Bentonite

[stormbringer]

I read in a former post here -- in the form of a link from a wine kit co. -- pertaining to the benefits of using bentonite in the primary batch. It makes a lot of sense and it is always a part of the kit wines I've made.
















































Being new to making country wines (fruit wines from scratch), I have read that adding bentonite to the primary batch in country wineswillconflict with one of the other additives (acid blend, yeast nutrient, peptic enzyme, or ?). Don't know because that just about covers all the ingredients except the fruit, sugar, and yeast.


Question: Anyone use bentonite in the primary when making a country wine?If youknow of any problem thatthe bentonite would create, please explain.


BTW, I read several post where there is concernabout the difficulty in mixing bentonite with water for the primary batch. It's been my experience that mixing the bentonitein a cup of water and letting it sit for 24 hours will cause it to dissolve completely.

 

[Wade E]

I do not use bentonite in any of my fruit wines anymore as I found no
difference with or without it personally but will use it in the kits if
it comes with it just to follow instructions without comprimising the
warranty. Ive also heard of this conflict but dont recall what it was
conflicting with either.

 

[stormbringer]

As for my experience making friut wines: I have only made 1 batch. And I didn't use bentonite in the primary but had no problem during clarification by using isinglass. Just wondering if itwould makeany difference using the bentonite in the scratch wine since it appears to work well in the kits.

 

[masta]

I don't know of any reason why using bentonite in the primary of a country wine would cause any issues and not all of them are created equal so different methods to dissolve them may be necessary.


I use warm water and a whisk with bentonite from WE and RJS and a 30 min cold water soak for the 'worms' before stirring from MM.