Welp, bad news about the Pumpkin Ale. After being in primary for about 4 weeks, it got infected. At what point this happened, I am not sure. It could of been that there was some bacteria still in the fermenter, but I cleaned it with PBW for this brew. By some crazy chance, something may have gotten in there while the lid was open for a second when I took a gravity (refractometer) sample a couple weeks ago. Or the Star San in the air lock just wasn't good anymore and allowed for something to get in.
It does look like a lacto infection, which isn't the worst thing in the world. I am considering adding some brett and letting it sit for a year to see what happens. I just would have to purchase a new auto-siphon and tubing to reduce risk of infecting other brews. Also, I would have to figure out how to bottle it, since I do not want to infect my keezer at all. I'm going to do some more research and figure out the best path going forward before dumping it.
The sample that I did take was a beautiful orange color but it did taste like an infected beer. Hopefully with time and the addition of brett, it would get better. I could end up with a really cool Sour Pumpkin Ale for next Halloween.
