Possible mould in my sloe whisky?

[AncientHouse]

Hi all,

This is my first post, so apologies if it's in the wrong area.

Following several disastrous attempts at making country wines, I have been easing myself into the homebrew world by making sloe gin (I know, not technically a 'brew' but a place to begin).

I have also attempted to make a sloe whisky using honey in place of sugar - and this is where my problems began.

I noticed within 24hrs something that looked perhaps a little like mould, sitting at the bottom of the Kilner jar. I shook it and it clouded the whiskey, but settled within a few hours, sitting on and between the sloes, leaving the whiskey clear at the top. It has not continued to develop (i.e. no additional growth) beyond the first 48hrs and has not changed appearance since that time (about 3 weeks).

Could this be mould or something similar? I was astonished that anything would grow in 40% whiskey, even with the small amount (120gm) honey added.

I can't seem to find anything online to help me identify the stuff and, most importantly, determine whether it might be a health risk or simply something that can be filtered out before bottling.

Could anyone on this board shed any light on this at all?

Many thanks

 

[Cheshire Cat]

I've never used honey but I do make flavoured gin with sloes as well as damsons and raspberries. I sweeten with sugar and this originally settles on the bottom of the jar. I shake the jar daily for the first week until it all dissolves. Try shaking the jar and see what happens.

 

[An Ankoù]

Almost certainly not mould. Moulds absolutely need oxygen to grow so it wouldn't be lurking at the bottom of the Kilner jar. Moreover, the alcohol in the whiskey would kill a lot of things including mould spores. It's more likely that something in the honey or the whiskey, which was otherwise soluble in its medium, has been precipitated out by mixing the two. Just decant the clear liquid, drink and enjoy.

 

[pilgrimhudd]

Almost certainly not mould. Moulds absolutely need oxygen to grow so it wouldn't be lurking at the bottom of the Kilner jar. Moreover, the alcohol in the whiskey would kill a lot of things including mould spores. It's more likely that something in the honey or the whiskey, which was otherwise soluble in its medium, has been precipitated out by mixing the two. Just decant the clear liquid, drink and enjoy.

This