Stressbaby
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I ran into a friend who runs a small commercial operation and has made a lot of elderberry wine. He claims that the secret to achieve color stability is the ADDITION of tannins.
I've read that elderberry is normally high in tannins. So this seems to run against the conventional wisdom.
My elderberry is in 2 3-gallon batches. It has beautiful color right now, an inky purple. I did a boil, then cold soak for 3-4 days, and then fermented on seeds/skins for 3 days. The wine doesn't seem excessively tannic at this time. It is very fruity and actually lovely. I'm using oak cubes in one 3 gallon batch and had planned on doing so in the other. I did not use any fermentation tannins. I would really like to preserve the color I have now.
Does anyone add tannins to their elderberry? If so, when and what kind? Is color instability generally a problem?
I've read that elderberry is normally high in tannins. So this seems to run against the conventional wisdom.
My elderberry is in 2 3-gallon batches. It has beautiful color right now, an inky purple. I did a boil, then cold soak for 3-4 days, and then fermented on seeds/skins for 3 days. The wine doesn't seem excessively tannic at this time. It is very fruity and actually lovely. I'm using oak cubes in one 3 gallon batch and had planned on doing so in the other. I did not use any fermentation tannins. I would really like to preserve the color I have now.
Does anyone add tannins to their elderberry? If so, when and what kind? Is color instability generally a problem?