OK I ran my pressure cooker a while back and thought I know I'll put that used hop bag in as I'll be dry hopping on the IPA I have lined up. I left the cooker shut for days. Eventually when I opened it I threw the hop bag immediately into a sealable plastic food bag and left it for brew day.
Clearly there the hop ba was damp. The sterilisation process was good. But when I came to use said hop bag today there was a massive mould growth in the bag! Clearly these food bags are not "sterile".
Hop bags are notoriously difficult to clean up. In the end I used a brand new one hung into the last ten minutes of the boil.
Proof the mould spore is everywhere
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Wolfy
Re: Proof the mould spore is everywhere
Boiling your wort does not kill all the bad bugs (spores) so it is possible that the mould was carried-over from the kettle.
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greenxpaddy
Re: Proof the mould spore is everywhere
Wolfy you misunderstand - this hop bag was sterilised in a pressure cooker. So either the spore caught in the half second from pressure cooker to bag or the bag itself already had spore(s) inside from manufacture.
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boingy
Re: Proof the mould spore is everywhere
Storing anything damp is a recipe for trouble and as soon as you opened your pressure cooker the hop bag was back in the big bad non-sterile world.
Give a used hop bag a good rinse in the sink then a quick boil then hang it up to dry somewhere. Once it is clean and dry there is nothing for bugs to live on.
Give a used hop bag a good rinse in the sink then a quick boil then hang it up to dry somewhere. Once it is clean and dry there is nothing for bugs to live on.