clowdy and hazy

[intoxicating]

Last Oct. I started a 3 gallon batch of Mexican Plum. When it was ready to rack to the secondary, it hadn't picked up much color, so I simmered the contents of the strainer bag from the primary, with a little water and got a nice pink color. After it cooled I added more pectic enzyme and added the resulting pink juice back to the must. It proceeded on schedule with a nice complex fruity smell and yummy taste, but IT WILL NOT CLEAR. I have added the full recommended amount of sparkloid twice, an entire (6 gal. usage) package of turboklar divided into two applications, 1 month apart, stored it in the refrigerator for a month, bentonited it, and pectinaised it twice. It has been sulfited and sorbated. It tests negative for starch haze. Every time I add finings it drops a 1/2 inch of sediment. The attempt to put it through an electric filter clogged up the filter after only the first gallon, and the filtered wine still had a haze.
Now what?
Do I bottle it hazy and drink it myself, when no one is looking? Make sangria?
I plan to make another 3 gallon batch this fall, should I add a gallon of the hazy wine to the new must and see if it will clear with the new fermentation?
What am I missing? I haven't added any albumen yet, but that is the only thing I do have read about that I haven't tried.
What about adding more sugar and reinoculating?
Thanks to anyone who has ideas.

 

[NorthernWinos]

Did you try Super-Kleer KC???? Or....Isinglass????

I use Super-Kleer KC and just love the results on fruit wines....Only once did it not work, I added Isinglass and the next day it was brilliant.

Good luck...and a warm Welcome to the Forum.

 

[smurfe]

After all of that I would say just drink it. It don't appear it is going to clear. I would guess it is still a pectic haze/proteins from all of the solids that appears was suspended in the wine. I have made a few wines and beers that would not clear as intended even with fining agents. They tasted fine though.


I suspect the simmering of the fruit locked in the haze. I have poured hot water to extract color. If I let it set too long before dropping the temp I got cloudy wine. Simmering for a while would extract even more starches.One reason I like the steam juicer. I get the juice that has a nice color but not all of the starches from the solids. I can then add some solid fruits in a bag back to the juice to get the solids back for some body if there is not enough body in the extracted juice.

 

[smurfe]

Oh yes, sorry I forgot. A big welcome to our forums. Glad to have you here. Look forward to reading more posts from you.

 

[Wade E]

Have you degassed this wine really good as if it is still holding gas then the fining agents will struggle to work. Temps in the mid 70's will help your wine degas better.

 

[smurfe]

You may be right Wade. After I re-read the initial post I see a few things I missed. It was refrigerated which will allow CO2 to suspend much easier in the solution. I also didn't notice where they stated that each time the add finings they get solids drop out. I would still believe that there are starch solids suspended but they state it test's negative for that.
I would recommend that the wine sit at stable temperatures with monthly racking until it clears. If it is still dropping solids, there is a chance it will clear. If it plugged up filter pads after sitting that long, there are still a ton of solids in the solution.I made an apple wine that took forever and a day to clear but it eventually did. It wasn't a very good wine, but hey, it eventually became clear.

 

[Wade E]

I too had a hell of a time with my apple wine and even SuperKleer took a week and a half with it but like you said it did clear though after some time was actually a damn good wine, 1 of my best scratch wines to date.

 

[intoxicating]

Thanks for the warm welcome, and all the ideas. Yes, it was degassed, and I did use the Super Kleer for 6 gallons, I divided and used half, then the other half the next month. I will try the isinglass next.

Are any of the chokecherries I see all over the blog in the Dallas Texas area?

 

[Wade E]

Im at a loss for the cloudy wine as Ive never had a wine that didnt clear. Was the pectic enzyme you used fresh? What method did you use to degas your wine? Just trying to think of your options here.
Edited by: wade

 

[intoxicating]

I am not sure how fresh the pectic enzyme needs to be. I used the last of one jar on it, and when Igot another jar from George I used it within a month of getting it. I am doing mostly fresh or frozen fruit and honey wines, only a couple of kits so far, so I pectic enzyme everything that goes into the primary. I even salvaged a gallon of prickly pear that I got too much acid in by using a wine from jelly recipe to make a second gallon. Talk about needing pectic enzyme, I had added liquid pectin to the jelly, to supliment the pectin in the fruit. How do you know if the pectic enzyme has given up the ghost?

 

[Wade E]

The powdered form can last several years but the liquid has a short shelf life and must be refrigerated from what Ive read. Ive also read not to add it to wine until at least 8 hours of adding sulfites and not to add it to wines at or above 75*.