Clarifying/Fining my Merlot

[kessler]

Made another batch of Merlot from grapes sourced last year. Now it's got a great mouthfeel and body to it ( almost chewy!) but it tastes a bit tannic and earthy, plenty of fruit early on but the length is tainted by something I can't quite put my finger on.


Anyway I need to fine/clear it.

I did contemplate a bit of bentonite but wonder whether this would strip too much flavour/body out as well as some of the undesirable tannins?

Brouwland has a combigel (casein gelatine and isinglass) that is supposed to be used with something else called blankasit, which looked interesting, but I know nothing of it.

What would the panel recommend?

Bob - if you're out there it is the same feel as that 'big' Merlot I sent you to taste sometime back (that subsequently went titsup due to volatile acidity) - same grapes but a different batch.

Thoughts welcome.

k

[kessler]

Guess not then

[ukric]

Only ever really use kwik clear post ferment myself, I don't know enough about other methods really....I shall be asking about this tomorrow me thinks.

Bentonite I use in the primary.

[SiSandrine]

When my Elderberry has been a bit earthy and tannic like this I have used egg white to good effect.
Also have just done a kit wine merlot which included 2 part finings kieselsol + chitosan. This has been particularly effective and I don't think I have noticed a loss of aroma (not tasted yet though).
I have had great effect with bentonite in white wines, not tried it at this stage in a red (though I do add to primary). Again I don't find that bentonite strips anything but undesirables (in whites in my experience).
You could try an experiment on a small batch?

[NorthernWiner]

Is the Merlot really not clear? I only ask this because I can't recall a single instance where I had a red wine that didn't completely clear on its own.

Now excessive tannins, on the other hand, is a different problem and requires a different treatment. One of the oldest, but most effective, treatments for smoothing tannins is egg white fining. Egg white has the ability to remove the most harsh, bitter tannins, while at the same time being very gentle on the wine.

This link to WineMaker Magazine provides a good description of the process. Though the reader's question concerns white wines, it applies as well to red wines.

http://www.winemakermag.com/component/resource/article/993-egg-white-fining-overoaking-wine-wizard

[lockwood1956]

Hi Kessler,

sorry to only be getting back to you now, but i am delivering a training course at work this week, and am organising grapefest (tomorrow) so havent been online much this week.

happy to evaluate it if you want to send me a little.

My Merlot from last year is just coming into its own now, but really, it needs another year to be at its best. Maybe the wine just needs to grow into itself?

have you had the grapes in the freezer for a year?

I concur with Steve, I dont add finings to my grape wines at all.

[kessler]

They've been frozen for 6 months or so then thawed - hence the over extraction of tannin - maybe?

It's very chewy, with a hint of something I don't like.

I don't have to fine it, but I'd like it to feel more like wine than soup

[Cellar_Rat]

I also concurr with Steve about egg white - used it myself a couple of times - its the only 'finings' i use - brillaint.

[bzac]

if it was mine I'd leave it alone untill it had aged at least 12 months .
tannins mellow . I wouldn't fine any wine that young for tannins . if you do you run the risk of reducing the wines longer term viability.

that said if the tannins are really rough , perhaps from green seeds or stemms , I know it may sound counter intuitive but adding a low dose of a product like tancor grand cru can help.
what it can do is bind with the harsh short chain tannins and form longer chain ones which are rounder in the mouth.
then age it for another six months or more , if its still pretty rough you can always egg white fine it later.

also aging in or with oak can help.

[Cellar_Rat]

" I wouldn't fine any wine that young for tannins"

Just a thought but you run the risk of stripping colour from a red when you fine a older wine, because the tannins have bound.

[kessler]

I filtered it through my mini jet in the end.

Seems to have cleaned up somewhat, then I adjusted acid again

So now its in shock.

I'm going to leave it well alone now, it's sulphured and sat in the quiet for another few months.

[bzac]

its possible the sharpness you were percieving wasn't tannins at all but carbonic acid from the dissolved Co2 , especialy if filtering it helped.
filtering it won't pull tannins but would remove some of the co2.

[bzac]

" I wouldn't fine any wine that young for tannins"

Just a thought but you run the risk of stripping colour from a red when you fine a older wine, because the tannins have bound.

well once the tannins are bound you may not want to fine it as they will feel smoother in the mouth at that point.
but if time doesn't do it then you can egg white fine quite late.

when fining you are not going to add enough egg whites to strip the colour out .
1/2 to 1 egg white will tannin fine a 60 gallon barrel without dropping colour perceivably.