Well, kegged up 5 of a ten gallon batch of Scottish ale. Split in two buckets both have pellicle formation. the other i just might let sour a bit. Just wanted to share my experience as i think i know where i f-ed up. Normally I use glass, I have used, and reused buckets SEVERAL times with no problems. I started sanitizing post-boil instruments and the fermenters during the mash using star-san. emptied the buckets during the runoff (90min) and rolled the foam around and let it sit in the bottom until after the boil. I made two 1 quart starters in 1 week before in sanitized glass and moved the cake to 2 8oz sanitized glass jars after 4 days, Star-san as well. For a long time I only used the 1oz bleach 1oz vinegar 5 gal water sanitizer. I switched to Star San not too long ago realizing its just as cheap and theres no threat to any of my stainless steel. I don't think this is my problem, nor the buckets. Where I think I screwed up, and I share this because I did it without thinking and I'm sure its been done before inadvertantly as I did with no problem: "I pulled the fresh yeast cakes from the fridge and added warm water straight from the tap and a tsp of table sugar, all unsanitized, to jump start fermentation." WHY? I really don't know, I guess just an experiment to see if it would jump fermentation quicker? If that was what I thought, it worked, I had noticeable activity after about an hour, but wtf was I thinking REALLY!? The beer tastes great now and I guess the only question is: do I rack the other half and let it sour, or keg it and try to drink it as fast as I can?
i don't think you'd have to drink it all that fast. most souring activity takes a while for it to take on a very noticeable effect. i think if you like how the first keg tastes and you want more go ahead and keg it up right away. you don't really know what you might have in there so who knows whats going to happen with it. i would drink it if it tastes fine.
I hope your beer turns around for you. I've had some ESBs that tasted kind of funky at first and shaped up beautifully. I want to point my finger at under-pitching and under-aeration at the start of fermentation, but it might have also been the ingredients. You've got 10 gal. You can drink the hell out of it, and then drink the hell out of it again 3 months from now. You'll know which way the beer is going by then.
Trying not to post too busy drinking and drinking and drinking and drinking and ah hell i guess i don't have to drink it all in one night But really I'm still considering to leave five gallons to just sour and funkify for at least long enough to see if it might produce any good qualities such as a lambic or sour, and/or drinking the hell out of it as fast as i can if/when it starts turning on me. The first half is kegged and will no doubt be consumed before any of it will be detrimental to flavour. Its a shame so tasty right now, 'beer jeebus' please forgive me for what i've done.
