Hi, I started a red wine made from my father in law's grapes. There's only a gallon of it, but it is rich and dense, almost black in colour. I think it will be pretty good when it is finished, especially since it came from a fairly random grape vine which wasn't sold with wine in mind. I tasted it on second racking and it was better than the bottled french burgandy I was drinking the day before...
I usually use a laser pointer and a strong torch to ascertain the clarity of my 1 gallon and sometimes 5 gallon wines. It usually gives a pretty good indication of how clear or otherwise a white, rosé or clear red wine is. However, for a rich red grape wine, or elderberry wine, the laser just can't penetrate more than 1/8th of an inch until it is clear - or close to.
The wine was started on the 1st of September last year. I expect it to be September 2009 before we drink it. My question though, is should I leave it to clear naturally, however long that takes. Or, would I be better off fining it at some point and then continuing the again process after that?
I am keen to let it clear naturally if it isn't likely to result in off flavours or other damage to the wine. If I do need to fine it, what would be recommended, bentonite?
I am sure it is a 'how long is a piece of string' kind of question and surely doesn't justify the length of my post :) Any help though is gratefully received as always.
Best wishes to you all, Jim