Mold on Keg?

[estarrio]

Hi all,

I bought a keg of Founders Breakfast Stout in January. The cap stated that it was filled in September 2008. I had it in a beer fridge while I finished another keg - Life had other plans for me and I'm just tapping it now. The only time it was not cooled was on the thirty minute drive from the liquor store to my house.

When I removed the cap to put the coupler on, I saw white, fuzzy, mold like growth where the coupler would connect.

Knowing that it would be way too late to complain to the retailer, I decided to thoroughly clean the area and tap it anyway. After tapping the cap, I drain poured the first couple of glasses to flush it out a bit and then poured myself a glass.

The beer is tasty and doesn't seem to have any off-flavors. Has anyone had this happen before? Should I be worried? I'm assuming the good tasting beer means that the beer itself is OK and perhaps the keg wasn't washed properly on the exterior?

Thanks!

[cubby_swans]

I think the beer in the keg is fine. It's flavor profile has changed since it was kegged, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's most likely the mold you saw was simply due to moisture present under that cap. You kept the keg refrigerated, and that's a beer that should have few problems with 4 or 5 months on it, IMO. It has a high ABV, which certainly helps with longevity. Just a week ago I just finished my last bottle of Breakfast Stout that was out of a 4 pack I bought back in September, and I think it tasted better now than it did when I bought it. So as long as it's not funky, no worries.

If the beer was bad due to bacteria, you'd know it. The beer would be very sour at best, by now. Your taste buds are the best judge of whether or not a beer is bad.

P.S. I'm slightly jealous that you have a keg of FBS! The 4pk I bought of this was $16!

[BrewGuru]

That is excellent beer, congrats on having it on tap.

Cubby is totally right, the beer would taste way off if any of that bacteria had made it in there, I'm sure your keg is fine.

Fungal / Bacterial growths are completely normal in the valve of a sanke keg, or on the valves of most kegs for that matter. I have seen hundreds of kegs with mold or bacteria on the valves, it doesn't take long to start growing.

A lot of breweries try to do their best to rinse the valves out with sanitizer before they are capped and shipped, but you still get get the ocassional drop or two of beer from keg filling that is pure food for any nasties in that space. The good thing is there is no way for them to get into the keg due to the airtight seal.

When you see this, clean the valve thoroughly before tapping, and if you have the time and the patience and the inclination, use some sanitizer as a last step to kill off anything that might be present, as once you tap the keg the beer WILL be flowing over parts that were previously exposed.