Pear wine recipe and tannins

[stillmarykay]

I am looking for a pear wine recipe. I found one that looks good but it calls for grape tannins. 1. I don't happen to have any. 2. I find that wines with tannins in them cause my hot flashes to be worse. Do I have to add tannins? I am new to winemaking so any help I can get will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Hokapsig]

Check the recipe section for Pear Wine. I have 6 gallons going downstairs and will let it clear , then backsweeten and add some cinnamon sticks. I didn't add any tannin to mine....

 

[WVMountaineerJack]

So are you using pears from a tree, canned, juice? Its your wine you dont have to add anything you dont want to add, but adding yeast helps out a lot WVMJ

 

[salcoco]

The skin of a pear has sufficient tannin to make wine. none should be required.

 

[stillmarykay]

Check the recipe section for Pear Wine. I have 6 gallons going downstairs and will let it clear , then backsweeten and add some cinnamon sticks. I didn't add any tannin to mine....

Thanks, I will look again.

 

[jamesngalveston]

sal is correct, all fruits have some tannin, its like a protective coating..
you do not have to add tannin....infact..i hate it...
i dont want my wine to taste like wood.

 

[Pumpkinman]

James,
I think that you have adding oak (powder, chips, cubes, spirals and barrels) and adding tannins confused, if you add enough tannin to make your wine taste like wood, then you are doing something awfully wrong, tannin additions impart different characteristics, help to protect and smooth out the wine. Tannins help to balance and add sensory profiles such as mouth feel, and body, tannins aid in color stability, some give the perception of sweetness, and add subtle notes of coconut and vanilla, among the few benefits of adding tannins, depending on which tannin you use and when you are adding them.

 

[Julie]

Tannins add to the complexity of the wine, without it your wine will taste flat. Are you sure it is tannins that cause your hot flashes, I would think it would be more like the alcohol that causes that.

 

[Julie]

Thanks Tom, that was a good description of tannins and to add to that, low tannins will give your wine an off flavor, celery and/or vegetable taste are the common tastes that a low tannin will cause.

 

[stillmarykay]

thanks

Thank you all so much for your help with understanding tannins. And, yes alcohol can make my hot flashes worse but I can drink a bottle of my chokecherry wine and it does not affect me. I drink a bottle of store bought wine and my hot flashes are worse and more frequent.

 

[kirknotes]

I checked this thread looking for Pear wine recipe help - but see it was about tannin....from what I understand tannins are also needed to age the wine for more than 12 - 16 months