Home winemaking is a complex technological process that has a lot of nuances. Of particular note is the clarification of wine at home. Wine from some fruits and berries clarifies itself and does not require your intervention. These drinks include redcurrant, raspberry, cranberry, and chokeberry wines . But still, for full purification, most wines need human help.
It is at the stage of filtration and clarification that the future drink gets rid of unnecessary substances that make it cloudy. Thanks to the removal of sediment, the wine turns into a pure noble drink and acquires a presentation. How to lighten homemade wine? First you need to filter it and choose the most suitable brightener.
How to remove wine from yeast?
The removal and clarification of young home-made wine should be carried out no later than two weeks after its fermentation with yeast. Otherwise, the drink may deteriorate.
Before proceeding to the clarification process, it is necessary to get rid of the bulk of the sediment at the bottom. You need to do this as follows:
- Put the bottle of future wine on a raised platform (table or stool).
- Nearby, at a lower level (for example, on the floor), place a basin. Previously, it must be carefully cleaned with soda so that no foreign substances from its walls get into the wine.
- Insert a thin rubber hose into the bottle. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that the end of the tube does not touch the grounds at the bottom. Lower the other end into the basin.
- Tilt the bottle slightly so that fluid flows through the hose into the basin.
Pour wine from a bottle into a basin should be extremely careful so that unnecessary sediment does not spill out with the liquid.
Several filtering methods
Even if the wine appears visually transparent after being removed from the yeast, it still needs to be additionally filtered. To do this, there are several proven methods:
- Using porous cardboard.
- Through a cone-shaped bag made of flannel, calico, boomasei or canvas.
- With asbestos.
Each of these options is effective in its own way. They are similar to each other in principle of action and technology, but have their own characteristics.
To clean the wine of foreign particles, it must be passed several times through the filter material. If you choose a cloth or cardboard, the liquid must be poured several times to wash as much “debris” out of it.
How to filter?
The above methods do not give a 100% guarantee of the complete clarification of the drink. If you see that this treatment did not completely eliminate the turbidity, use asbestos:
- Pour the wine into an enameled bowl and add a handful of asbestos to it.
- Stir it carefully and strain through a cloth bag.
- Repeat the procedure several times, adding a pinch of asbestos at each approach.
When you see that the wine has become crystal clear, and a decent layer of asbestos has formed at the bottom of the bag, you can stop filtering and proceed to the next processing step - clarification.
Clarification folk remedies
Clarification of wine at home is, in fact, an even deeper filtration, which eliminates all the smallest particles from it, turning the liquid from turbid to transparent. It is also called bonding.
The fact is that no matter what clarifier you choose, particles of microscopic “debris” in wine, under its influence, cling to each other and form flakes. Over time, they will settle to the bottom of the bottle, and then it will be possible by the method described above to pour the completely purified liquid through a rubber tube.
Each wine has its own clarifier
There are many ways to clarify wine at home. Many of them are suitable for a particular type of wine :
- For pear or apple wines - gelatin.
- For intolerant and not very sour - tannin.
- For red, egg white, etc.
Before lightening homemade wine, you need to choose the right concentration of the product with which you will do it. The technology for using all of the above substances is the same, and it is called the “scientific poking method”.
That is, you need to pour at least 150 grams of wine into at least three containers with volume divisions (for example, baby bottles or measuring cups) and add a different amount of clarifier to each of them.
The vessel in which the effect will be most noticeable (the maximum number of flakes is formed) will become a reference point for determining how much “sticking agent” you will need.
Also, clarification of wine at home is carried out with milk, coal, heat, cold, etc. But all these methods cannot eliminate all the sediment at a time and require new repetitions of the procedure.
In order not to waste your time and energy on this endless process, you can use a more effective tool - bentonite.
A universal remedy for any wine
Bentonite is a powder made on the basis of white clay. The principle of its action is based on the attraction of microscopic particles with opposite charges to each other. That is, particles with a positive charge attract proteins and other substances with a negative charge. At the same time, they stick together and settle to the bottom.
Clarification of wine with bentonite not only helps eliminate the turbidity of the drink. This powder also cleans it and creates a kind of immunity from harmful bacteria and yeast, preventing it from deteriorating over time. It does not change the smell or the natural color of the wine. Although it removes a small amount of tannins from the liquid, which give the drink a characteristic astringent aftertaste.
These changes are so insignificant that it is impossible to feel them if you do not overdo it: do not filter too much and just properly conduct the clarification of the wine. Do-it-yourself wine is very important not to spoil, so as not to lose its taste.
Lighten the wine with bentonite
This process is very simple. To achieve maximum results you need to make a minimum of effort. To conduct clarification of wine with bentonite at home, you must:
- Pour a little boiling water into a bowl or glass and pour powder into it.
- Carefully beat the contents until it becomes similar in structure to a cream. Be sure to ensure that there are no lumps left in this mass.
- Then it should cool under the lid for about half an hour.
- After again, thoroughly beat everything and pour into a future drink.
The optimum ratio of powder to water is one part to four. Clarification of wine with bentonite is a very economical way, because just one pack of substance (basically it is packed in 15 grams each) is enough for 20-25 liters of wine.
What needs to be done after processing the wine?
To create a perfect, clean drink, you need to master home winemaking well.
Wine processing requires special attention, thoroughness and control during each stage.
After removing the yeast, filtering and clarifying, all you have to do is leave the resulting liquid alone for a week and a half or two.
Then pour the drink through the siphon without affecting the precipitate formed - and that’s all, you can calmly wait until it finally comes to condition and is ready for use.