Infection?

[Richard]

Kyle: this is a bit of an odd request, but would you mind sticking the gunk in a baggie and shoving it in the fridge? I'd been meaning to make some vinegar (a gallon, will take a LOOOOOONG time to mature afaik) from my mead.

I'll be able to tell by the smell if it's really vinegar mother.

[Kyle]

the gunk is gone, but you can have some of the soon to be vinegar. That does make sense. I noticed a few fruit flies swarming near the fermenter. Apparently we had forgotten to rinse out a couple of bottles before chucking them in the "to recycle bin" and there was a fruit-fly zoo in there several days later when we got back into town.

About 10 fruit-fly bodies were in the airlock for the mead, but it still apears to be fine and I replaced the airlock. It is 16.5% abv, so I don't know if that has any impact.

[Richard]

Acetobacter turns alcohol into acetic acid... Alcohol tolerance is supposedly 18%, so danger is still there. Obviously the visible signs would be present there also if you got unlucky.

( source: http://cooking.stackexchange.com/questi ... wn-vinegar )

(slight OT: my mead bottomed out at 1.020 on both carboys. Much sweeter than before; seem that the 1118 could only go so to about 17%)

[Kyle]

well, this is definitely infected, it tasted good until about 5 days ago, and then downhill, its quite sour now, down the drain it goes, once Richard takes whatever he wants for vinegar experimentation.