Disaster!

Made a Muntons Oaked Ale kit that has been sat in the pressure barrel for a week or so in a warm place to settle out and secondary ferment. Really looking to drinking this one.

Anyway last weekend I decide to move it out to the garage to cool off in readiness to drink, put it on the floor, went to move some other stuff around in the garage then turned round and inadvertently kicked the tap on the King Keg.

This was shortly followed by a hissing noise and a puddle of beer rapidly appearing on the floor As the taps on the King Keg have a nut on the back there was no way to tighten it up again.

In a fit of panic I put the barrel outside to avert the flood then grabbed my sterile fermenting bucket off the shelf and proceeded to empty the contents of the barrel into that. After it was all out I put the lid on, did up the tap on the barrel, and syphoned the beer back into it. Once it was all back and the lid was secured again I injected some CO2 for good measure and it's now sat there settling again.

Do you think it will be okay or am I likely to have trashed it by exposing it to the air? Proof is in the drinking I guess and I'll probably start on it next weekend. :pray:

Sounds like you did as good a recovery job as could be expected. Getting the CO2 in there should also help mitigate against the oxygen. I'd say it is probably a brew that you want to drink as quickly as possible, which is no bad thing I suppose!

It will be fine but will have lost most of its fizz. I would re-prime with say 50g of sugar and leave somewhere warmer for another week before moving back into the garage. Will be good as new !

Lol, I did the same thing whilst walking past my king keg earlier this year. I ended up shoving my hand in to tighten the tap nut back up and it turned out ok (2 second rule and all that :whistle:)


Cheers!

glynb said:

Lol, I did the same thing whilst walking past my king keg earlier this year. I ended up shoving my hand in to tighten the tap nut back up and it turned out ok (2 second rule and all that :whistle:)


Cheers!

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Do stories like this suggest we are too hung up on sanitation? I'm hoping so because the Coopers Pilsner I have brewing ATM was a disaster but I'm letting it brew to see how it turns out.

Problems started when I stupidly forgot I was using DME not BE and just dumped it in the FV along with the kit and hot water. The DME immediately clumped up into brick hard groups, meaning I had to attack them with a hand held blender which broke up and the bits had to be fished out the FV by hand. So the brew started with a right few golf ball sized DME clumps as well as having had blender blades and my hands in the mix.

All that said it seems to be fermenting and I will let it go the distance and see how it turns out.

Mine was fully fermented so I thought it would have been spoiled. Guess I just got lucky. I think before fermentation it's a lot more forgiving as the process of the yeast turning the wort to alcohol will help kill nasties off (not always though so always best to keep everything as clean/sanitised as possible I'd say).

glynb said:

Mine was fully fermented so I thought it would have been spoiled. Guess I just got lucky. I think before fermentation it's a lot more forgiving as the process of the yeast turning the wort to alcohol will help kill nasties off (not always though so always best to keep everything as clean/sanitised as possible I'd say).

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I think you get luckier if the beer has fermented - definitly more vulnerable just after the wort has been made initially than after fermentation has progressed.

wheazy_joe said:

Do stories like this suggest we are too hung up on sanitation? I'm hoping so because the Coopers Pilsner I have brewing ATM was a disaster but I'm letting it brew to see how it turns out.

Problems started when I stupidly forgot I was using DME not BE and just dumped it in the FV along with the kit and hot water. The DME immediately clumped up into brick hard groups, meaning I had to attack them with a hand held blender which broke up and the bits had to be fished out the FV by hand. So the brew started with a right few golf ball sized DME clumps as well as having had blender blades and my hands in the mix.

All that said it seems to be fermenting and I will let it go the distance and see how it turns out.

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Il drink to that Joe!!
IMO there are too many people with the idea we are transplanting organs or launching missions to Mars, which is spoiling new brewers enjoyment through stressing over non existant/minor problems.
Btw your BKE enhancer would have been fine, first time I used it I made a similar mistake, and was told it was doomed! Needless to say it turned out fine, greedy things these yeasties, so now I always launch the bag. Happy days

Beer won't support pathogenic bacteria so the worst things that can infect beer just make it taste bad.

Bacteria don't survive on hard, clean and dry surfaces so infection isn't a very high risk. Anything more than proper cleaning and sensible hygiene precautions is probably over the top. Cleaning thoroughly immediately after use and using a non-rinse steriliser before use seems a pretty simple regime to me. Beyond that you minimise the chances of air-borne spores getting in.

If you have any accidents like those above, you just do what you can and cross your fingers. I think you'll be unlucky if you do get a problem though.

Sounds like I may have got away with it then.

I'll let you know how it is when I get started on it. Just got to finish up the last few pints of the current brew so should be moving onto this one at some point next weekend.

There seems to be more opinions floating around regarding cleaning/sterilising/infections than any other aspect of the hobby. I read an opinion the other day that cold tap water isn't sterile and shouldn't be used, hands up who uses tap water to make beer? I do.
I've some star san and another cleaner which I've never used.
First kit said to use bleach, so I did and have continued to do so.
I clean with hot water and bleach and sterilise with a cold water bleach solution. I then rinse the bejesus out of everything (using cold tap water - the horror he uses water!) and have never had a problem. No brews infected and as yet, I've never opened a bad bottle.
The only airborne contaminant I'm worried about is a fly taking a swim before I pitch the yeast.
I'll wager that within 5 years, home brew shops will be selling surgeon gloves and masks. The reason? People will buy them.

Bevvied said:

I'll wager that within 5 years, home brew shops will be selling surgeon gloves and masks. The reason? People will buy them.

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You mean you don't already use gloves and mask as well as hair net? You crazy maverick!!!!

full scuba gear will be par for the course in ten years time.

Bevvied said:

full scuba gear will be par for the course in ten years time.

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Full scuba gear coated in starsan.

Interesting debate I've opened up here :)

Weirdly I briefly looked at the instructions for the kit I was making last night (Milestone - Dasher The Flasher) which suggested wiping the tins over with sanitiser before opening / after warming them up in some warm water and sanitising the tin opener you use! I've never done this and never will.

I also use tap water to make my beer, if it's safe to drink then it is safe to make beer with surely. The water supply companies do add a bit of chlorine (and other stuff) to keep it relatively free of bacteria. Remember in the olden days we used to drink ale as it was safer than the water, hops have antibacterial properties and a lot of nasties don't like alcohol either. Whilst I'm sure my beer might taste slightly better made with mineral water I don't have my own spring and therefore can not justify the additional cost. If I did AG or EB I'd be even less concerned over the use of tap water as the prolonged boiling stage will kill everything undesirable.

I'm probably going to update my cleaning / sanitising routine at some point as things have moved on a bit. My Dad taught me to use sulphites to sanitise my brewing equipment by making up a bottle of stuff with Camden tablets, a little citric acid and water. I clean my FV and PBs when I've finished with them with warm water and detergent, give them a good rinse, then pour in a good glug of the sulphite solution + another camden tablet, then put the lid on and put it away ready for next time. When I come to use it again I just give it a good slosh round to ensure all the surface has come into contact with the sulphite solution the lob it away and use it. I use the solution to sanitise anything else that may come into contact with the beer i.e. stirrers, syphon tubes, hydrometer, etc.

Occasionally if I feel the need I'll give the PB or FV a deep clean using Milton at the suggested dilution, rinsing after and then adding the sanitiser again.

I now realise that sulphites are a yeast inhibitor but doesn't necessarily kill it so perhaps not the best stuff to use after all.

Thinking I'll go with a bleach type cleaner i.e. VWP after each use of a vessel and then Star San to sanitise.

But with the current regime I've never had a brew go bad so I must be doing something right?

Right then.
Somebody help me with this helmet and I can then get my Coopers Stout in the FV.

Whilst I agree using your tap water should be fine..( I do it still if I get my boil volumes wrong by just topping up a bit)

I don't think it is a case of whether it is drinkable it will be sterile. remember you're mixing this water with a sweet wort, so any bacteria that is present can start to munch on it..

As I say I think we'd have serious issues all over if tap water was leading to infections..

Bacteria is all around us so a part of brewing is keeping our beers exposure to a minimum and getting a healthy fermentation going.. it is why I am becoming increasingly in favour of starters when using liquid yeast especially if you're like me and cook outside, the lag times are short and the fermentation is healthy meaning your yeast got to it first!

Bevvied said:

There seems to be more opinions floating around regarding cleaning/sterilising/infections than any other aspect of the hobby. I read an opinion the other day that cold tap water isn't sterile and shouldn't be used, hands up who uses tap water to make beer? I do.
I've some star san and another cleaner which I've never used.
First kit said to use bleach, so I did and have continued to do so.
I clean with hot water and bleach and sterilise with a cold water bleach solution. I then rinse the bejesus out of everything (using cold tap water - the horror he uses water!) and have never had a problem. No brews infected and as yet, I've never opened a bad bottle.
The only airborne contaminant I'm worried about is a fly taking a swim before I pitch the yeast.
I'll wager that within 5 years, home brew shops will be selling surgeon gloves and masks. The reason? People will buy them.

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Unfortunately your last sentence is all too true.
40+ kits with hydros thrown in after running under hot tap, numerous lid lifts, "dirty" tin opener, and even a paddle used totally unsterilised..... 40+ brews enjoyed. Equally as important, a hobby enjoyed!!

Of course you're right Cov, as a super newbie I'm just dazzled by some comments I've read regarding sterilising etc.
I want my hobby to be fun, I don't want to be chasing myself in circles sterilising the thing that is used to sterilise something else. No doubt I'll hit a bad bottle or complete brew at some stage, but I'll continue to bleach my arms and then bleach my kit. As has been said a billion times, what works for one, may not work for another.
Apologies to anyone if they think I've extracted the urine, not my intention. I just find it funny.

Bevvied said:

Of course you're right Cov, as a super newbie I'm just dazzled by some comments I've read regarding sterilising etc.
I want my hobby to be fun, I don't want to be chasing myself in circles sterilising the thing that is used to sterilise something else. No doubt I'll hit a bad bottle or complete brew at some stage, but I'll continue to bleach my arms and then bleach my kit. As has been said a billion times, what works for one, may not work for another.
Apologies to anyone if they think I've extracted the urine, not my intention. I just find it funny.

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No no I get you.. it is one of the steps that is a PITA at times and can diminish the fun somewhat.. although if it was me not having to clean up after bottling or boiling would be lovely!!:lol:

What I find odd is some people seem really blasé about it and go through brew after brew and never have a problem.. or at least to their knowledge

Others are going OCD because they cannot understand why every beer they make which would to them be clean in an operating theater is going bad..

There was a guy at the beginning of the year who we assume ended up jacking it in.. he tried everything brew after brew but he said he had 160 bottles of poison.. we went through pretty much everything, he thought it was down to sucking on the siphon in the end.. something a lot of people do without issue.. of course on here we cannot see what people are really doing.. it does seem for whatever reason some people seem to get more susceptible to it..