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Acetobacter Infections

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mezmiro

mezmiro

NewBee
Registered Member
Feb 23, 2013
16
0
0
Washington State
I have a JAO variant I'm working on with tangerines, and I'm noticing a white film which has developed on the skins of my tangerines. The film does not occur elsewhere, and I don't notice an overly sour smell to the batch either.

Are there any ways to diagnose this without the "sour smell" test? I notice a slightly citrus smell to the mead, but it's not necessarily a smell akin to vinegar.

Note: I have also sanitized everything thoroughly, though I do have a kombucha brewing which might have thrown off some unwanted bacteria. =/
 
It probably isn't acetic acid bacteria - it would smell like nail polish if it was. If your fruit is floating on top and drying out you can get mold growing on the fruit if you don't punch down the cap and keep the fruit submerged. Usually such organisms need air and if you eliminate headspace, that also tends to prevent the problems which is why you fill up the container when fermentation slows down per Joe's recipe.

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The interesting thing is that the white substance actually isn't on the cap; instead, it's on the portion of the rind that's submerged in the must. This is the first time I've seen something like this. I've also made the habit of submerging the cap daily so it doesn't dry out.

Though, it doesn't smell like nail polish! Good news indeed. :) Any idea what else it could be?
 
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I suppose it's on surfaces where yeast wouldn't settle from gravity? That's the most common thing I see on my fruit chunks is yeast... but a swirl and it all falls off.
 
I gave it a swirl, and the substance pulled off. A bit of a taste, and it's good! Thanks Chevette.

After further research, apparently kombucha does indeed contain acetobacter. So, I better keep that well away from my mead!

And.. a little bit before writing this post I almost had an MEA lol. My newest batch isn't playing very nice right now.
 
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