cheapdrunk
New Member
For my first (real) try at wine, i brewed 2 gallons of ginger and lemon, slightly staggered (one gallon maybe 3 and a half weeks behind the other).
For the first gallon i tried fining with gelatine, which had small results - so after two weeks i added bentonite, after another two weeks the wine was.. what i then regarded as "acceptably "clear, so i bottled
The second gallon finished fermenting at about the same time i added bentonite to the first. And still being at the experimental stage, i decided rather than gelatine or bentonite, to try the wilko wine finings i had seen in local wilkos.
I used about a fifth of the "A" - kieselsol. and an hour later, as directed, added a fifth of the "B" -Chitosan ( a fifth of each, because the pack stated enough for 5 gallons). A week later, the wine was much clearer than the first batch that i had bottled - but rather than bottling this batch, i decided to rack and add some more of the wilko finings. I racked, added another fifth of pack of each "A" and "B"
WOW. 24 hours later, the wine was clear. and i mean, CRYSTAL clear. To be honest (judging by many homebrew wines i had seen made by others over the years) i did not think it was ever even possible to get a country/fruit wine completely clear as this was. No discernible taste from the wilko finings, or any other unwanted effects - in fact, i was VERY pleased with the taste,body, and strength considering it was my first real attempt.
Being still "amateur", i will still be experimenting with other fining methods - but i will always be keeping some of this wilko stuff in
For my latest redcurrant, i added the bentonite at must stage - as is recommended by some (as i said, still experimenting), and i have noticed after fermentation ended that a HUGE amount of lees/sediment (therefore,loss) remains... which im not sure if was created by early adding of bentonite, or by the lalvin 1116 which i havent used before. I dont think it due to pulp, as i kept this separate in nylon during primary - and did not "over" strain when removing.
Its now 10 days after fermetation ending, and cold storage, and wine is still very much cloudy. Will be adding my wilko finings in next couple of days.
PS great site, am picking up some good advice. thanks
For the first gallon i tried fining with gelatine, which had small results - so after two weeks i added bentonite, after another two weeks the wine was.. what i then regarded as "acceptably "clear, so i bottled
The second gallon finished fermenting at about the same time i added bentonite to the first. And still being at the experimental stage, i decided rather than gelatine or bentonite, to try the wilko wine finings i had seen in local wilkos.
I used about a fifth of the "A" - kieselsol. and an hour later, as directed, added a fifth of the "B" -Chitosan ( a fifth of each, because the pack stated enough for 5 gallons). A week later, the wine was much clearer than the first batch that i had bottled - but rather than bottling this batch, i decided to rack and add some more of the wilko finings. I racked, added another fifth of pack of each "A" and "B"
WOW. 24 hours later, the wine was clear. and i mean, CRYSTAL clear. To be honest (judging by many homebrew wines i had seen made by others over the years) i did not think it was ever even possible to get a country/fruit wine completely clear as this was. No discernible taste from the wilko finings, or any other unwanted effects - in fact, i was VERY pleased with the taste,body, and strength considering it was my first real attempt.
Being still "amateur", i will still be experimenting with other fining methods - but i will always be keeping some of this wilko stuff in
For my latest redcurrant, i added the bentonite at must stage - as is recommended by some (as i said, still experimenting), and i have noticed after fermentation ended that a HUGE amount of lees/sediment (therefore,loss) remains... which im not sure if was created by early adding of bentonite, or by the lalvin 1116 which i havent used before. I dont think it due to pulp, as i kept this separate in nylon during primary - and did not "over" strain when removing.
Its now 10 days after fermetation ending, and cold storage, and wine is still very much cloudy. Will be adding my wilko finings in next couple of days.
PS great site, am picking up some good advice. thanks
