Is my beer okay??

[BananaJump12]

Hi, I'm on my second batch of beer, I decided to make a wheat beer so I bought a recipe kit and brewed it. It is currently fermenting but i noticed it had a layer on the top and I am wondering if it's normal or has something gone wrong, maybe an infection? I've only brewed one batch before and it was a Czech pilsner, I don't remember it having a layer on the top. PS: the greenish hue is from dry hopping, the layer was there before I poured the hops in. I hope this is the right place to post this, thanks for any feedback and help!

 

[OnePlate]

The layer on top is totally normal. It's a foamy mix of yeast and proteins called krausen that is a part of an active fermentation. It will eventually settle to the bottom.

Happy Brewing!

 

[kh54s10]

If you don't have that, then you need to worry. Even with a lager you should have some though they are more active at the bottom. How long it lasts is different with which yeast and also recipe as well as fermentation temperature.

Everything seems fine. Close that up and wait at least until day ten before opening again. Take 2 gravity readings 36 to 48 hours apart. If the numbers are the same you can bottle it.

 

[Rackrunner]

Yep, this is normal.

I found this thread helpful the first few brews to help differentiate:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/post-your-infection.71400/

 

[bracconiere]

looks like a yeast infection....as stated, with some pellet hop dumped in it, i've heard of guys eating worse when their desperate....

(but normally their should be a krausen ring about 2-3" above the liquid? maybe even blowing out the airlock, that's what blow off tubes are for)

 

[kh54s10]

looks like a yeast infection....as stated, with some pellet hop dumped in it, i've heard of guys eating worse when their desperate....

(but normally their should be a krausen ring about 2-3" above the liquid? maybe even blowing out the airlock, that's what blow off tubes are for)

OP doesn't say how long it has been. I bet the krausen is still rising.....

 

[BananaJump12]

Thank you all for the help, some additional information: It is currently day 15 of fermentation and Im currently cold crashing it (per the recipe). I started cold crashing yesterday (5 degrees celsius) and I would say about half of the top layer has sunk to the bottom. Do you guys still think it's krausen? Or a yeast infection as bracconiere stated?

 

[kh54s10]

Your krausen should have dropped before now. If it looks like the picture in the OP it is krausen. Sometimes it doesn't drop on it's own. I suspect it will clear with more time cold crashing. There is a thread with lots of pictures of infections.

 

[eddie]

Hi, I'm on my second batch of beer, I decided to make a wheat beer so I bought a recipe kit and brewed it. It is currently fermenting but i noticed it had a layer on the top and I am wondering if it's normal or has something gone wrong, maybe an infection? I've only brewed one batch before and it was a Czech pilsner, I don't remember it having a layer on the top. PS: the greenish hue is from dry hopping, the layer was there before I poured the hops in. I hope this is the right place to post this, thanks for any feedback and help!

That's normal. It's the krausen and will collapse within a few days. Pilsners are lagers (cold ferment) and don't usually produce a prominent krausen. Ales (warm ferment) almost always produce a thick, foamy, krausen in the ferment.

 

[MDExile]

Thank you all for the help, some additional information: It is currently day 15 of fermentation and Im currently cold crashing it (per the recipe). I started cold crashing yesterday (5 degrees celsius) and I would say about half of the top layer has sunk to the bottom. Do you guys still think it's krausen? Or a yeast infection as bracconiere stated?

This is the beginners forum, correct? You guys going to let OP off the hook?
If you don't have a "yeast infection", you don't get beer. I'm pretty sure Bracconiere was trying to say everything looked OK. Correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[bracconiere]

OP doesn't say how long it has been. I bet the krausen is still rising...

i thought about asking that too....

Or a yeast infection as bracconiere stated?

you know that was a joke right? lol