Too much tannin

[DaleP]

I added about 15 pounds of black raspberries to 5 gallons of blueberry honey mead (15 pounds of honey, water to 5 gallons, champaign yeast, Fermaid K). Absent mindedly, I let these sit tooooo long and extracted too much tannin from the seeds, or so that is how it taste. Tried a test glass sweetening with honey, did not hide the flavor. Any ideas on how to fix?

 

[Chevette Girl]

It's possible that if you use some clarifier (bentonite, sparkolloid, etc) that it might pull some tannins out along with everything else that settles out.

Other than that, time, time and more time. I've got a batch of highbush cranberry wine that's only now starting to be drinkable after 5-6 years of slow and gradual settling of tannins on the surface of the carboy.

 

[AToE]

Time is really the best answer I think, how old is it now though?

 

[Chevette Girl]

I had left raspberries in primary once long enough that it was getting a woody taste to it, but that aged out too.

 

[Duracell]

Rather than wait 5 years couldn't you make another 5 gallon batch and dilute the over tannin batch with the no tannin batch half and half? You'd have to have a nice sized bottling bucket but you'd get half the tannin overall.

Of course, it would also dilute the berrys you mixed in but you can boost it up with a seedless puree or something.

Blend it out or wait it out.

 

[AToE]

Rather than wait 5 years couldn't you make another 5 gallon batch and dilute the over tannin batch with the no tannin batch half and half? You'd have to have a nice sized bottling bucket but you'd get half the tannin overall.

Of course, it would also dilute the berrys you mixed in but you can boost it up with a seedless puree or something.

Blend it out or wait it out.

Yes, this is another good option! Though depending on the severity of the problem, waiting for this batch to mellow might be just as fast or faster than waiting for the blended mead to age out since some of it was made of younger mead anyways - really depends on the specific mead for sure.

 

[DaleP]

I fined with geletin, guess I'll age it out, is the majority in favor of bulk aging or aging in bottle?

 

[YogiBearMead726]

I prefer to bulk age, but then again, I have so few examples of bottle aging that I can't say that it's from experience...just prejudice I suppose.

I can say that bulk aging gives you a more consistent product from bottle to bottle compared to bottle aging, since individual bottles may vary from each other slightly. Especially if the mead is relatively young, and flavors haven't fully integrated evenly in the carboy. But again, for me, this is all just from second hand info and speculation.

 

[AToE]

Bulk helps protect from temp fluctuations and people drinking it... so that's what I personally aim for!

 

[Medsen Fey]

The gentlest way to remove tannins is using an egg-white fining. The albumin will bind tannins. Gelatin should also be effective, and PVPP is another fining agent good for removing tannins/phenolics.

 

[ash]

how do you go about with the eggwhite ?

 

[ash]

I prefer to bulk age, but then again, I have so few examples of bottle aging that I can't say that it's from experience...just prejudice I suppose.

I can say that bulk aging gives you a more consistent product from bottle to bottle compared to bottle aging, since individual bottles may vary from each other slightly. Especially if the mead is relatively young, and flavors haven't fully integrated evenly in the carboy. But again, for me, this is all just from second hand info and speculation.

all this is right, but also I noted that a mead can look clear when you bottle it and after e faw months you get lees in the botles. So I try to rack one more time instead of boteling when I feel like putting it in botles and keep it in the carboy for as long as I don't need the botles.

 

[Medsen Fey]

how do you go about with the eggwhite ?

From Ben Rotter's site

Egg-white

Egg whites, containing albumin and globulin, are a moderately aggressive protein fining agent. (Egg-whites contain roughly 12% protein substances useful for fining.) The peptide linkages of the albumin form hydrogen bonds with hydroxyl groups on tannins.

They are used for the clarification and tannin reduction of red wines (the proteins attract long-chained tannins, slightly reducing astringency) and are not considered suitable for whites. As far as red wine protein fining goes, they are relatively gentle. Because of this, gelatine is a better fining agent to use against harsh tannins.

For fresh egg whites doses range from 1 to 8 egg whites per barrique (225 L). Typical dosage is probably 1-5 egg whites per barrique. Dried egg white powder or frozen egg whites can also be used at 0.1-0.2 g/l, and dried albumin used at 8-15 mg/l.

Free range organic is considered by some to be the best source of egg whites for fining purposes.

Egg whites are usually prepared by adding a small pinch of salt to some warm water (to help dissolve the globulin which is only soluble in the presence of salts). One part egg-white to two parts salt-water is then mixed. The whites are whisked but not beaten (avoiding foam as this fails to mix). The mixture is then added slowly into the wine whilst stirring continuously.

The wine can usually be racked of the fining lees after one or two weeks.

The wine wizard also has a good answer. For a non-berry mead, 0.2 ml of egg white per gallon is probably plenty.

 

[Brimminghorn]

I have to agree with Medsen. I have used this method on blackberry and elderberry wine and mead. Its work well in removing excess tannin.


Cheers,
Jon