Help with Winecap identification

I started a Winecap bed in mid April. Today (June 18) I see mushrooms growing. Yay!! But are they Winecap?? I don’t feel confident about their identification. What do you think?

Jackie,

Those sure look like Wine Caps to me!  So you started in April and already have mushrooms?  Great Job!!!

If you don’t mind, would you please comment on your experience on my long-running Wine Cap thread HERE:

https://permies.com/t/82798/composting/composting-wood-chips-chicken-litter

I keep this updated so new mushroom growers can have a base of experience and your bed looks like it is doing great.  If you really want to see if it is a Wine Cap, let it grow and see if it gets to dinner plate size.  They won’t taste well at that point but it’s gargantuan size is about a perfect indicator that it is a Wine Cap.

Again, great job!

Eric

I agree, they look like Winecaps to me! They must like the conditions you've created, good work!

I don't think you need to, but if you want some extra confidence in identifying Winecaps, you can take a spore print. Should be dark purple brown, nearly black. There's some information and a video about look alikes and positively identifying Winecaps here too:
https://learnyourland.com/wine-cap-mushroom-identification-look-alikes-and-more/