After fermentation, particles of must, yeast and tartar remain in the wine, making the drink cloudy. This problem is solved by treating the finished wine with special substances that absorb unwanted particles, causing them to precipitate. In the language of professionals, clarification of wine is called "fining". We look at the best ways to clean homemade wines from grapes, apples, and other fruits.

The most effective method of wine clarification is long-term aging. But this natural process takes too long (3-6 years) and is only suitable for expensive branded drinks.

Long-term aging of homemade wines is impractical, they are insisted for 3-5 months. After that, the drink is drained from the sediment and look at its color. If the wine remains cloudy and this does not suit you, you will have to clean it.

Clarification does not improve homemade wine, only makes it clear and may slightly increase shelf life by removing foreign impurities. This is a desirable but optional step that can be skipped.

To determine the optimal clarification method, I recommend experimenting with different methods on a small amount of wine (250-500 ml).

Wine purification methods

1. Gelatin. One of the simplest and most effective methods, suitable for all wines (especially white grape, apple, pear and plum). Clarification of wine with gelatin is carried out according to the following technology:

1. For 100 liters of wine, take 10-15 g of gelatin. During the day, soak it in cold water, changing the water every 8 hours.
2. Dissolve the swollen gelatin in warm water, add to the wine container and mix well.
3. Leave the wine alone for 2-3 weeks, until all the turbidity gathers into flakes and precipitates.

2. Egg white. Effective for cleaning all homemade wines, especially useful for reds (grape, cherry, plum). To clarify 100 liters of drink, it is enough to separate 2-3 chicken proteins from the yolks, add a little water and beat into foam. Then mix the whipped proteins with a small amount of wine and pour into a container where the main part of the wine is located. You will see the result in 18-25 days.

3. Bentonite (white clay). It has absorbent properties, perfect for fining grape wines. Sold as a fine powder. To clean 1 liter of wine, you need 3 grams of bentonite (20 grams in a tablespoon). Technology:

1. Pour dry white clay with cold water in a ratio of 1:10 (one part of bentonite to ten parts of water) and leave for 10-12 hours. For example, to clean 20 liters of wine, you need 60 grams of white clay and 600 ml of water.
2. The clay will turn into lime. Before clarification, add water to betonite so that the mixture becomes liquid, then pour it into the wine in a thin stream.
3. Drain the wine from the sediment after 5-7 days.

4. Milk. Universal way. For cleaning, it is enough to add 1 teaspoon of skimmed cow's milk to 1 liter of wine, mix thoroughly and leave to stand for 3-4 days at room temperature.

5. Heat treatment. Close glass bottles with wine tightly with a cork so that the alcohol does not evaporate when heated. Put the bottles in a suitable container, pour cold water up to the neck. Slowly heat the water to 50°C and remove the container from the heat without removing the bottles from it. Wait until the water cools down.

The procedure can be repeated 2-3 times. After the last heating, the wine is allowed to settle for 5-6 days and drained from the sediment. The method is used to clean any homemade wines.

6. Clarification of wine with cold. Table wines are chilled (on the street or in the refrigerator) to -2°C, not fortified to -5°C. Under the influence of low temperatures, the particles of wort and yeast sink to the bottom. After that, the wine is quickly drained from the sediment and filtered until it has warmed up.

7. Activated carbon. I recommend using this method only in extreme cases, when an unpleasant smell is felt in the wine, indicating the presence of fusel oils. Pharmaceutical activated charcoal is ineffective, wood is needed.

Grind coal to a powder state and add to a container with wine at the rate of 3-4 g of coal per 10 liters of drink, mix well. Insist for 3-4 days, shaking every day. Filter through filter paper.

8. Tannin(powder from the core of the oak). Suitable for refining wines with a high sugar content (apple and pear from sweet varieties) and without astringency on the palate. Tannin can be purchased at a pharmacy.

To clarify the wine, dilute 10 grams of tannin in 2 liters of distilled water, let the solution settle and filter it through filter paper. Next, add 6 teaspoons of tannin per 1 liter of wine, mix, leave for 7-10 days, then drain from the sediment.

Regardless of the method chosen, after using it, I recommend letting the wine brew for another 25-40 days, and only then bottling it. The fact is that the smallest particles that are not visible to the eye, still remain in the wine, they will settle a little later.

Hi all! Today I will talk about how to lighten with bentonite. I'll tell you what it is, where to get it and how to use it correctly. Cleaning mash with bentonite is very simple, as you will see now.

Why lighten the wash

You probably know why you need to lighten the wash as well as I do, but just in case, I will briefly tell you. After fermentation, dead yeast remains in the mash, which burns during distillation. From this, the final product acquires an unpleasant odor. It also contains harmful compounds.

The easiest way to clarify is to put the fermentation tank in the cold and wait a couple of days. This is easy to do in winter, but what about when it's summer? In this case, bentonite will come to our aid. He will not only paste over the mash at room temperature, but will also do it much faster than cold (there were cases when 15 minutes were enough).

What is bentonite

Bentonite is a kind of natural clay. It is used in construction, agriculture, mechanical engineering, etc. Even in the manufacture of tire rubber and as cat litter.

But the most interesting thing for us is that it is used for fining (clarification) of wines. And quite a long time ago - from the 30s of the last century in the USA and from the 60s in the USSR.

The thing is that this clay has excellent adsorbing properties. It binds dead yeast, microorganisms, proteins, etc. and precipitates with them. In other words, she collects all the dregs from the mash and lowers it to the bottom. The result is a purified and clarified mash. We can only decant it (drain from the sediment).

Where to get bentonite

The easiest way to buy it is in specialized stores for winemakers. I recommend doing just that. It is inexpensive, and you will definitely get exactly the right bentonite for winemaking, ready for use.

If there is no opportunity or desire to buy wine bentonite, then you can buy it at a regular Pet Store. The fact is that bentonite is used as a cat litter. Carefully read the composition, it should indicate that the filler is 100% clay and there are no flavorings.

But even such a filler does not always give the desired effect. Plus, it still needs to be prepared for use. I will talk about the preparation in the next section, but for now I will give examples of well-established manufacturers of toilet fillers: Pi-Pi-Bent, CatSan, WC Closet Cat, Kotyara.

I do not advise using any others, because. not all work well. If you have experience using a manufacturer that is not included in this list, then write about it in the comments.

How to use

I just want to warn you. It is necessary to lighten completely fermented mash and at room temperature. If the process is still going on, then nothing will work.

If you are sure that fermentation is over, then proceed to gluing. If in doubt, it is better to heat the mash to 50 degrees. At this temperature, all yeast will definitely die.

Attention! Do not dispose of used bentonite down the drain. He clogs the pipes so that they can only be cleaned mechanically!

• Application of wine bentonite

1. We measure the right amount of bentonite. The instructions say that a standard sachet of 20 grams is enough for 23 liters of liquid. I usually use 1.5 grams per liter for a 10 liter fermenter. With an increase in volume, the amount of clay in proportion is better to increase.

For reference: if there are no exact scales, then navigate as follows - half a teaspoon ≈ 2 grams, a heaping tablespoon ≈ 20 grams.

But it is better to buy electronic scales of course. They come in handy in our business. You can order the Chinese. Rubles for 350.

1. Fill with cold water 1 to 10, mix and leave to swell for 2-3 hours.
2. When the clay swells, mix it again and slowly pour it into the fermentation tank, while actively stirring the mash.
3. Clarification can last from 15 minutes to a day. Usually a 10 liter bottle is pasted over for me in 20 minutes, a 20 liter bottle in 40-50.

• If you decide to use litter for toilets

1. We take the filler at the rate of 2-3 tablespoons per 20 liters of mash.
2. Grind to powder in a coffee grinder.
3. Pour the powder into a jar, pour warm water (250 ml) and mix until smooth.
4. Pour the resulting solution into the mash.

You can not dirty the grinder and not grind (although it is better to grind anyway). Just pour the filler into a jar of warm water, close the lid tightly and shake vigorously so that the bentonite does not clump. Shake the jar 4 times with an interval of 5 minutes.

Video

Below is a visual video of one of my colleagues from YouTube. Illuminates right before your eyes.

Now you know how to lighten mash with bentonite. Difficult? I also think not. Be sure to tell us in the comments how you did it? Also indicate what kind of bentonite was used. In conclusion, I will say that this is not the only way to paste over mash. In the near future I will tell you about others. And for today, I say goodbye to you.

Sincerely, Dorofeev Pavel.

There are many recipes for making delicious homemade wine. But to get a great product, it is not enough just to combine the ingredients. It is important to follow the technology and follow all the necessary steps. Aged for the right time, the drink is often cloudy due to residual wort and yeast. To make it transparent, it is necessary to clarify the wine. There are several proven ways to do this.

Why is lighting necessary?

Usually, wine prepared at home should be carefully poured into containers so that the sediment remains at the bottom. But the remains of yeast, cream of tartar and other impurities can make it so cloudy that the use of special substances is necessary. They act as an adsorbent and remove all excess, making the liquid transparent. For professionals, this process is called "pasting".

In industrial production, such conditions are observed under which turbidity of the product and precipitation are excluded. Therefore, clarification of wine is not required there. But if you make wine yourself, then it is unlikely that you will be able to avoid filtration or clarification. Both of these processes "steal" the taste and aroma of the drink, but gluing is the most gentle.

If your homemade wines need to be refined, then you need to choose the right active ingredient. It is preferable to lighten whites with gelatin, reds with egg white, and sweets with tannin. It is important to strictly adhere to the proportions, otherwise the sediment will only increase and the liquid will become even more cloudy. Therefore, before you deal with large volumes, test on a small amount.

Lightening methods

Concrete

A universal means of clarifying homemade wine is betonite. This substance is a grayish powder made from purified white clay. Concrete attracts unnecessary particles to itself and settles to the bottom with them. In addition to the fact that mechanical cleaning takes place, the drink receives protection from the development of harmful bacteria and increases its shelf life. In order to make the wine transparent, you need:

• Calculate the amount of the required substance (3 g of bentonite per 1 liter of product);
• Thoroughly mix the right amount of clay powder in water (1: 10) and leave for 10 hours. Then you need to dilute this mass with the same volume of liquid to get a creamy liquid mass;
• Gently and gradually introduce this gruel into the wine, while stirring it well. We leave for a week;
• In seven days, the sediment with bentonite will completely fall to the bottom of the container, and it will be possible to drain the clear drink.

Gelatin

Cleaning with gelatin is also effective. With its help, the wine becomes transparent and does not change its taste in any way. Pasting is carried out in the following way:

• For a 10 liter bottle you need 2 grams. natural gelatin;
• Pour the required amount of water (1: 10) and leave for a day. Then pour in the same volume of boiling water and move the mixture so that there are no lumps;
• Slowly pour the composition into the wine, without ceasing to stir it;
• Close the container and leave it for 21 days in a cool room. After the expiration date, simply drain the wine from the sediment.

Egg white

For cleaning red wine from grapes, plums, cherries at home, egg white is well suited. For a volume of 20-35 liters, it will be enough to separate the protein from the yolk of just one chicken egg. Beat it well until foamy and dilute it with a little water. Pour the resulting mixture into the wine, not forgetting to stir it well. After 2.5-3 weeks, a clear drink can be drained from the sediment.

Tannin

For red sweet wines, the use of tannin is effective. You can buy this powder at a pharmacy. Dissolve 10 grams of the substance in 1.5-2 liters of distilled water, let the mixture settle and filter it. For every liter of homemade alcohol, you need an average of 6-7 tsp. solution. After mixing, you need to wait a week and drain the clear drink.

Milk

Some use clarification with milk. To do this, take 1 teaspoon of low-fat cow's milk for every liter of drink. Pour in the right amount, mix carefully and leave for 3-4 days, until a flake precipitates.

After you have carried out the gluing procedure, you need to leave the wine to age for another month. Purification by these methods does not give an absolute guarantee that the drink will become crystal clear. If you are not satisfied with one recipe, try using another one, having tested and adjusted the proportions on a small amount of the product in advance.

Before clarifying wine, you should know some nuances:

• Firstly, if there is no experience in such things, then test 200-300 ml of the drink should be cleaned. So as not to spoil the rest of the wine.
• Secondly, for fining wine, you need to use natural clarifying raw materials.
• Thirdly, after clarification, fermentation processes can be observed. In this case, you need to reduce the temperature in the room where the wine is stored to 10˚C.

You also need to correctly calculate the dosage of absorbents so that they completely absorb particles of raw materials.

Methods

1. White clay - bentonite. Used as a powder with fine grains. Perfectly absorbs the causes of turbidity. Particularly suitable for grape wines. Clarification of 1 liter of wine with bentonite requires only 3 g of powder (for comparison: 20 g fits in 1 tablespoon). Pasting technology is as follows:

• Bentonite for clarification of wine is poured with cool water in a ratio of 1:10, then infused for about 12 hours. For pasting 10 liters of an alcoholic drink, you need to prepare 30 g of white clay and 300 ml of water.
• Bentonite hardens into lime. So the clay needs to be diluted with water and slowly poured into a container with wine.
• After a week, removing the sediment, you can check the result.

2. Gelatin. Clarifying wine with gelatin is an easy way. It works great with all types of wines. Purification requires 1.5 g of gelatin per 10 liters of wine. Before use, gelatin must be soaked in water for 24 hours, then poured into wine. After a couple of weeks, the resulting drink can be drained from the sediment.

3. Protein of chicken eggs. Used to refine red wines. For 10 liters of alcohol you need 1-2 eggs. Warm water is mixed with egg white, and the mixture is whipped until foamy. It is better to use the mixer on high power. Then you need to pour a little wine into the rolls with water, mix and pour the resulting mixture into a container with the rest of the wine. The result will be obtained after 3 weeks.

4. Chitosan. It is obtained from the chitin of crustaceans. It is practically insoluble in water, but highly soluble in some acids. Dissolved chitosan is an excellent absorbent of fats, hydrocarbons and fat-soluble substances. One is rarely used. Usually, wine is first treated with chitosan, and then with Kizelsol - this is how the best effect is achieved.

5. Activated carbon. It is charcoal that is needed, since pharmacy charcoal is not very effective. In general, this method is rarely used. Usually - with a high content of fusel oils or an unpleasant odor. For 10 liters of alcohol, 3-4 g of powdered activated carbon is required. Mix well and infuse for 4 days, shaking from time to time.

6. Lightening with heat. The first step is to tightly seal the wine bottles. Then you need to prepare a container of water, where the bottle will fall. Clarification occurs due to a slow increase in temperature to 50˚C. After that, you need to slowly cool the wine and let it stand for a week.

7. Cold. Low temperatures sink small particles to the bottom. To do this, 3 liters of wine are placed in the refrigerator or in the winter on the balcony for 24 hours. Then you need to quickly drain the wine until it warms up.

8. Tannin. It is a woody powder from the heart of oak, very effective for apple wines. The advantage of this method is that tannin gives a special astringency to the finished drink. First, wood powder must be mixed with water (200 ml of water per 1 g of powder). The mixture is infused, then strain through cheesecloth. For 1 liter of drink you need 6 tsp. soaked tannin. You can remove the wine from the sediment after a week.

Unfortunately, it is not always possible to lighten fruit and berry wine, especially in non-professional home conditions, especially for beginners.

If the wine remains cloudy, then you can let it stand in a cool and dark place for another month - one and a half. Perhaps a precipitate will fall out, which is easy to get rid of.

The considered methods should be tried on small volumes of wine. If the pasting still failed, but the taste of the drink has not changed for the worse, then it can be. In the absence of a distiller, such wine can only be poured out and tried to cook again.

Before bottling the wine after a long exposure, it is desirable to clarify it. For this, various substances are used: tannin, egg white, gelatin, bentonite, fish glue. This process is called "fining" the wine.