I started making my own wine for one reason. To suit my taste. Some of mine are clear, some aren't. What I don't like I don't drink. It don't have to be complicated to be good. Thanks for the great information.

While I recognize that clarity isn't super important, I just remember a time in which I brought some homemade wine over to a friend's house for an event and I had just not racked it well enough and it was super cloudy and nobody tried it. In the end, it tasted great when I drank it myself, but the lack of clarity made a lot of people hesitant to drink, so now if I want to share, I like to try and have it clear, but if I plan to drink myself only I don't care quite as much.

Hey Brian.... “cations” would be pronounced “cat” “ion”+s as in the pleural. Just positively charged ions

Thank you for clarifying ( see what I did there) the use of clearing agents in our fermentations. As always you guys provide information as well as entertainment. I'm sure there will be so push back on this, but those that feel the same as you understand why you feel this way.

Amen sir! My mango wine never got to the “clear” stage but my friends and I loved it. It was delish to us without all the extra stuff. Only fresh blended mango, water, sugar and yeast with a three week wait did the trick. 😎😎

I totally agree. My wine/mead can be cloudy, IDC. I am drinking it for the taste, not for the looks.

heavy metals can be good like mettalica, iron maiden, disturbd, motorhead, deep purple, .... ;-)

I love your guys' content, been watching for a long time now! I've gotten to a point where now I can answer these questions along with you guys, which just shows how much I've learned in my time brewing. I'm happy to be growing in my experience along with you guys, thank you for all you've taught me!

I totally agree with both of you. Every brew I've made cleared with time. Love it. By the time I finished drinking one the other one was ready to go and Crystal clear. Set it and forget it. I don't worry about any chemicals or additives that way. Nice and simple. Thank you for all you do and the info too!!! Cheers!!!😊

I’ve used chemicals (pectic enzyme and a yeast nutrient) in one brew. It was my worst brew to date. On the flip side my best brew was made using local honey, some fresh picked blueberries, orange zest from the back yard, and bread yeast. But one thing has remained true with all off my brews. I can’t seem to taste clarity.

Another bonus on letting time clear your brew. You are also letting it mellow and age. So, you are doing two things at once to make your brew more appealing to yourself and others! In MY OPINION, the only time to use a clearing agent is when a brew is best when it is un-aged or "fresh" from fermentation. Which I have only found once out of the 30 brews I have made and I just cold crashed it the second time I made it.

Thank you for clearing that up guys 😊

Hi, i use for my brews 1 week of cold crashing and half a leaf of gelatin for the remaining "dirts". Works very well for all my brews! Cheers from France! Keep up the good work on your videos.

"mor-on that later (throws away sheet)" That made me chuckle, hats off to you.

I haven’t even heard of half of these things! Thanks for covering them and looking so deep into them!

I really appreciate the information of the clarifying agents. Had you all not made this video and had I not happen to cross it at this particular time I probably would’ve ruined 6 gallons of something delicious. Thank you for all the helpful information.

After watching this I appreciate the fact that clarity rarely affects me or the problems associated in obtaining clarity. Peace.

Great video as usual. The one thing I do want to comment on is that if things don't clear in secondary I tend to have sediment at the bottom of each bottle, so that is why I always wait for perfect clarity. If I was the only one drinking my bottles I wouldn't worry, but if I am going to give it to friends I want them to have a sediment free bottle.

Love it. I feel like a lot of the comments haven’t watched the early videos were y’all talk at length about using as few ingredients as possible and knowing what goes in it. Keep it up.

Great video Brian and Derica, thank you again for all the great insight and info! For a future video I wondered if you would consider discussing pH, it's impact on brewing mead, and what strategies can be considered to control it when necessary.

Thank you both for the "Clarification" ,keep them coming

Love the channel guys, been watching for some time now. You keep it simple so I tried my 1st batch some time ago and found a new hobby!

Brilliant video! Couldn’t agree more. Some things are more important to people than it is to others, both ways are perfectly fine. Is clarity 100% needed in home brewing? No, its all down to personal preference. As long as you are happy with your brew. I had an extremely cloudy apple, mango and kiwi cider, tasted amazing. Happy brewing guys and gals

i'll just wait and if my patients runs out i'll have some sediment in the bottle, who cares aslong as the mead tastes great

Thank you guys for all the great information! Great content and I've learned so much. I must be one of the ones that is fairly indifferent on the clearing agents; I have used Sparkolloid for a few stubborn brews that weren't quite as clear as I wanted, but looking back, I just didn't want to wait as long. I only wait a week or so after adding the Sparkolloid before bottling, and the brew is usually crystal clear enough for me. However, at this point, my closet is probably looking somewhat like under Brian's desk and I'm not so quick to bottle anymore. Thanks again; I will likely use Sparkolloid less or phase it out entirely as I get lazier and just forget the aging brews in their dark corner...

Yay I made the comments show! That cyser came out great by the way, I think I finished the last bottle in January. Watching this video with a glass of the lemon and ginger mead you guys showed us how to make in January (it's crystal clear too 😉)

I made your easy sweet red wine recipe. It's finally finished fermenting. Tastes great. Went from clear juice to cloudy wine, but I'm not fazed. It's busy settling the sediment out now in the fridge. It turned out a rose rather than a red. Again, not fazed. It tastes great. I used gelatin and cold crashing to clear my ale before racking - now that worked! The reason being that I find it takes really long, and I don't have the space to clear the yeast out in the fridge after carbonation, and I don't want the beer to sit clearing for months before I can enjoy it. The yeast taste in beer really spoils it.

A four year old video... After watching ALL of your podcasts, and a good majority of your videos, the initial nervousness of beginning is being quelled. The gratitude for what you guys are doing just can't be put into words. I've invited you into my home every day so far i feel like your part of my family ha! So, just like everyone else who watches and appreciates your hard work (and humor) thank you... It's not as mysterious and complicated as some might think. (Myself included) Sorry for my verbosity lol Please keep em coming 😊

WONDERFUL informative video guys! All my thoughts exactly. I researched all this when I first started (when I first started watching you guys as well), and I csme to the same conclusions.

Absolutely spot on. Don't boil, you'll probably not have pectin issues. Who wants to add mud to their brews? If you let it sit in conditioning, it'll clear and de-gas and be a beautiful thing

I love way you keep it simple.

Just found your video's and they are excellent ! I've been trying to watch them all, as I'm new to brewing and trying to apply the KISS principle to my new found hobby. Thumbs Up!

Yay on this video! As a Belgian I learned to drink beer that was cloudy. Hence,as long as floaties aren’t haunting my brews I have never minded cloudy brews. As far as wines go, I did have reservations about cloudy brews... that were commercially produced and were supposed to be clear. For a home brew, as long as I suspect it’s pectin, I don’t mind at all. When serving a cloudy wine, just don’t call it wine to snobs. Have them taste it unfettered by preconceived ideas and as you said: give it time. Pour carefully. No probs. On other words: I happen to agree... again!

Right on. Only really just started out with brewing.... everything so far has been totally clear on it's own. I wouldn't have minded if it wasn't, just the way it turned out.

Wow! This is me from the future! I'm binging the channel using KZfaq suggestions and am excited to understand why you use pectin enzyme now. Something changed, and I like that! Changing our minds is a sign of emotional intelligence when we get new information. Many thanks for continuing to share!

forgot Irish Moss. just saying. keep brewing dont lick door handles. have a nice day

Fridge space is my favourite ingredient in mead making.

Fantastic video! Very passionate and informative pair. Found you from a subreddit link having had questions about clearing. You’ve got my sub.

thank you for clearing things up....

It took me ages, and viewing a lot of your videos (some multiple times to get a handle on the 'tech-y' stuff), to realise that what I wanted to brew was simply something that I enjoyed drinking. Your cheapo red wine from supermarket juice was my first success (after many failures - and, as an interesting and useful result: rather a lot of vinegar that I use for cleaning.....). I enjoy, and agree with, your ethos, which you state clearly and in an easy to understand, and funny, way. Thanks for the videos - very enjoyable. Stay well, you nine .... actually, live long and prosper...

I see clearing as a challenge. I love to try and get a perfectly clear brew (beer). Some styles of beer *generally* require the beer to be clear (most lagers). It's a mental thing for people who don't know the difference. I will use gelatin (or chitosan/kiesosol) and carrageenan, time, and cold crash to get a clear beer. My wine, however, I feel should be cleared with time. Wine needs time and it's going to clear anyways, and its clarity is a testament to its age. In the end the flavor will never change but to me it just feels better to drink something I can read a newspaper through

I care more about taste than clarity. After putting my brew in secondary, I forget about it. Four months pass and I'm like, "Oh, look. I can see through it." XD

I have been using pasteurizing as my clarification tool. 140 degrees from 20 minutes and crystal clear mead in 5 days.

Lovely explanation and experience. I go with you.Amatuer from India. God bless you both.

As usual, I love your videos guys!!! Gotta say though that one thing is being a homebrewer and another, quite different, is being a comercial mead maker... That said, it's all about what you want!!! One thing is not necesarily better than the oter!

The winner once again is TIME!!! time will always WIN- and just do things right to begin with

Excellent show of knowledge based information.

I think you just saved my life! I was thinking of using bentonite, even had it loaded in my Amazon cart. I have a very serious metal allergy and consuming some of the elements you listed would be very harmful. Thank you

Very helpful! All good info to know!!

Opinions on chemical contaminants concerning bentonite aside here, I have found *one* use for bentonite flavour-wise. I had a rosehip wine where the tannins got away from me. Way too many seeds escaped into the wine. Bottom of the fermentation bucket, didn't see them until clearing. Even after 6 months of aging in the demijohn after finishing, way too much tannin. The bentonite stripped enough of the tannins out to make it palatable. Yes, it stripped out a fair bit of the rosehip flavour as well, but there's something to be said for adding flavours while back-sweetening. Bentonite is by no means my go-to method of clearing, it's like throwing the baby out with the bath water, but if all else fails I find it better than throwing out 25 litres of wine.

Brian and Derica , thank you . I only have pectic enzyme at home . Never used it . Haven't had the need to . After this , don't think I ever will .

Hahaha the grumpy cup while you're ranting😂 i love it perfect choice

I just love the "Brian rants!!!" You've made your point!!! (Point, Points, pointers, pointerers, pointererers??!!!) Love your vids!!!! When Derica starts a rant, I'd just RUN!!!!!!

Another great discussion between you, derika and us😃👍 I've used pectic enzyme for banana but other than that time has always been my clarifying agent. My grandparents taught me this years ago. I guess that works for our minds as we get older too🤣😁👍❤️

Love you man, i tried making my own win and it worked. Thank you for teaching me. I wish i could send some to you for your opinion.

In my experience, adding fruits is the best way to clarify mead. I made your viking blood and it cleared up insanely quickly because of the hibiscus! And since i have raspberries in my garden, i often make raspberry melomel and it clears up insanly fast as well. Right now i have one ready to be bottled, which had the raspberries added after primary fermentation. Half of that is still just a tradition mead, is still not clear after using bentonite AND gelatine in it, while the rasperry one was clear a week after adding them. I'll definitely look for other ways for clearing from now on. The secret might be in a small corner, like just adding some fruit that does little in taste but a lot in nutrients and clarifying agent.

Holy crap I thought Brian actually broke something...well done. Ya got me. Thank you for all of the great info!!

Great Video! I'm new to brewing so I'm watching a lot of brewing videos at the moment. I've subbed!

If clarity is an issue, pour the wine in a mug so you don't notice, LOL. Egg whites are natural and food grade. Only problem is mixing them in without introducing oxygen. I actually used a blender to mix 11 egg whites with a pint of the 5 gallons that I was clarifying. I dumped it in and mixed it up lees and all, and had my doubts. A week later it was as clear as can be. It had no egg flavors and tasted good. This was 30 years ago and I haven't done it since because I hate to waste food, and I like my eggs fried.

This video really sunk me in with y'al because of the way y'all feel about contaminants and pretty much anything extra in the wine that don't need to be there. Originally I cold crash my wines but for the last couple batches I've been using unflavored gelatin to clear in which I call and label as reserve. It's working pretty good as far as really clearing the wine faster since I don't wait four or five months before bottling. I most definitely feel anything you put it in the wine for whatever reasons becomes part of the wine and you had me sunk and sealed on that one when you said it . I am now testing cold crashing versus unflavored gelatin to see which one actually taste better which I believe cold crashing probably will because you have more of the fruit/flavor that may still be in the wine versus being taken out with the gelatin. I recently bought bentonite and tried it in a very small batch but wish I would have waited a day longer then I would have seen this video. From the beginning when I was reading about bentonite I was kind of iffy on it because of the fact of some things that may get left behind in my drink(even though they tried the pretty it up) but one thing seems to me is it's extra work and I'm cool on that especially after my first small batch. It didn't come out better than my gelatin or as I expected. I just wanted to say keep up the good work and stay pure.

Thank you! I been watching my spiced metheglin, your recipe, since October. It still hasn’t cleared but I’ll be patient now.

After making a batch of hard cider from: freshly-squeezed, natural, cold-pressed, unmolested, unpasteurized, apple juice that TASTED great (tannins), (thanks Belle Saison yeast!) - I had one of the relatives (her side of the family) utter: "But it's muddy!" (And refused to even taste it, whilst everyone else asked for seconds.) I took out my wallet, handed her $2 and told her to stop into the store, on her way home, and buy a packet of candy, apple flavor, whilst simultaneously explaining that: adding all sorts of chemicals 'just to make it clear' basically turns it into a Jolly Rancher.

I suggest for clarity (of the issue), secondary should be called something like bulk aging or mellowing. It is not actual fermentation and it is not bottle conditioning/carbing. It is it's own step in the overall fermentation process.

I bought Dualfine to use. Then read that chitsan was not recommended if allergic to shellfish or mushroom! Your video saved me from making a horrible mistake!! THANK YOU!!!!

Derica, love your shirt!

One of the best ales Ive ever had was Steelhead Pale Ale. 💯 Phenomenal. And was certainly not clear. As for ciders, Im a cloudy fan.

Agree my pyment is Crystal after 4 weeks at 17deg c in a fridge with 2 weeks cold crash at 3 deg c and is now sitting at 17 deg c in a fridge for several months. Absolutely crystal. No additives. Hydromel and read Mead as well.

That's all I needed to know. Thank you...

Pulled a quart off a stuck fermentation, cold crashed it and it was clear after a week. Most importantly it was burped twice a day to relieve gas pressure.

I have shared this video with my new wine-lovers group in telegram. Some guys in the group was ranting about clarity of wine and I stated him the same reasons why I would give more time to the wine rather than adding chemicals and clay to my wine/mead.

Dammit I'm gonna drink it not read a book through it!

Good video guys - I have been seeing a lot on the pectin and was thinking it might be something to consider - didn't realize it could be "potentially' harmful. I'm with you on the natural ingredients and easy to do!

My first mead I tried (Dark Sweet Cherries 2# Blueberries 1#, 1 cinnamon stick in fermentation. 1# of dry Dark Tart Cherries in secondary) started December 2nd and clear, good, and drank at Christmas. It was dry.

I'm in complete agreement with you on your position. I'm in the process of making my very first batch of mead ever. If it turns out cloudy, I don't care... if it tastes good... I care... if it tastes bad... I care. I'm just using 3 ingredients (honey, water, and yeast) with absolutely no clearing agents at all, because i want to experience what a very basic home made mead tastes like. Clarity is not the be all end all of mead making, for me... what is the be all end all is... does it taste good...to me. If so, I'm considering my attempt successful. End of story.

Time is everything with clarity. I did a cyser and it also is very clear. Just took a few months. The only time I use a filter (some filter sack) is when I dryhop my beer with a lot of hops. But that's just to get rid of the hops. Not nice to have hops in the bottle. The problem is that I cannot let the brew sit too long with the hops because this makes some grassy flavours. To do a secondary (conditioning) of that kind of beer is also not a good plan because it will loose the hops flavour. I usually also use tea eggs for dryhopping. This helps a little but still there is too much hops parts in the beer. So I stick to filtering when putting the beer from the fermenter to the botteling tank. Cold crashing the brew before botteling would be a solution but I am afraid to loose too much yeast for the carbonation in the bottle.

Great clips!

Great Vid guys, I did a clarity test with nothing and bentonite. In my pineapple mead. There was no difference in clarity but the bentonite cleared faster. Taste was the same and I had to let the bentonite age the same as the natural clearing(just let it sit) version. To get the same taste... my personal preference is to just let it sit. It’s too much work for the same results. I have plenty to do instead of adding another process to what works fine. Taste is more important than clarity to me... just one mans opinion..... happy steading 😁🍺😁

You covered this, but it deserves repeating: “volcanic” should set off some alarm bells when it comes to anything that touches your food or goes in your body. There are lakes in dead volcanoes that have very high concentrations of mercury and arsenic due to the natural occurrence of those elements in the soil, such that fish from those lakes can be toxic.

Clarity is more of a bonus than a goal for me. I love clarity, but i love taste more. Taste should be your end goal.

My first brew ever was kombucha. Lol I think it's an acquired taste because I I didn't really like it at first either but now I love it.

You guys are de bestest 💙

A lot of the artisanal stuff is advertized as "naturally cloudy". As a hobby brewer I see myself more in that lane and I do not really care to get the brew clear. It does not always last long enough to actually clear by itself. I totally agree that flavour is more important. I recognized a lot of the elements released from bentonite. Some of them are not allowed to be in my electronics solder or batteries. I definitely do not want to put that in my food.

Love your videos, all that personal protection equipment is needed only if you are in California for the Pectic Enzyme.

Just ordered my first brew kit, im thinking of making chillie mead and ginger mead

If it is safe to consume I will consume it, cloudy or clear. I prefer natural and simple. Water is harmful if inhaled. Last, I prefer classic country over heavy metal any day. Thank you for clearing things up for us simple home brewers.

This video couldn't have come at a better time, my most prided mead just unexpectedly became cloudy with a waxy white substance manifesting on its top. It's a spiced apple mead aged with orange slices for a couple months, I just finished racking it last winter and it was beautifully clear. In fact, it looked just like your Fey Wine except a bit more amber in colour. Four days ago, however, it turned into what I described above - Its flavour does not seem impacted, but my heart bleeds for its tarnished looks. I reckon that the weather is at fault, it was consistently 22 Celsius for a week and I keep the bottles outside in a shack.

Always enjoy your videos. Question, Do you find some fruits are harder to clear than others? Apple seem to take forever to clear.

Yup, I have tried bentonite, sparalloid, and another type that escapees me. The do work, but.....meh....it's just another tool in the arsenal. Time fixes most of it. The one thing that always helps is making sure you're degassing. On that note, I've started transferring some of my brews between carboys via a vacuum. Firstly, the target bottle literally has all the oxygen sucked out of it, secondly, the liquid under lower pressure burps out A LOT of the gasses just in the transfer, and thirdly, I can leave the starting container where it is because the liquid is getting sucked by the vacuum of in the line form the target bottle. It doesn't need to be moved or elevated. Not moving it means that I'm reducing the risk of sloshing lees around and/or dropping a big honkin' glass carboy full of boozy goodness.

You guys rock! Kombucha is not for the taste, it’s for the life benefits. Your first beer in your life was horrible, and you learned to love it 😂

If it tastes good and I don't have to chew it then I don't have a problem with it being a bit cloudy

Cold crashing seems to be working for me, I doubt I'll ever use a clearing agent.

I might also add that I have used pectin enzyme, but it doesn’t seem to make a difference in clarity. But it sure does help extract flavor in my experience

Ok Thank You for the Info.. :)

love you videos!

Frost all Brian and Thank You for your how use you tube video, used it to find your clarity video because I was wondering how long it take to clear a brew in my case apple cider using half concentrate and half juice did get and exact answer but I’m guessing 6 months sooner I hope. As Brian says”enough rambling thanks again

My tomato wine cleared naturally after 3 months. After 6 months it tasted amazing and looked amazing. 6 bottles of clear tasty wine that cost 20p per bottle

Love the shirt Brian. (from a new bee keeper)

I started three one gallon brews in August 2019. I only had enough bottles to bottle all three. So when it came time to bottle I bottled one of the brews. The other two are still sitting waiting to be bottled. I racked them and degassed them and let them sit. It is now April 2020 The other night I was getting things together to bottle another gallon. I noticed they are still off gassing. I was very surprised by this. So I decided to leave them for a couple more days.

Thank you for this video. It really helped me understand more about what goes into the brews. The first mead I ever made I used a store-bought kit (liquor quik brand) and it used finings and a bunch of other things that I can't pronounce to clear the mead. In the end, it came out super clear but tasted absolutely awful. Tasted too much like chemicals and rubbing alcohol. After that, I went to Google and KZfaq to find better ways. That is when I came across your channel and fell in love. I have made multiple batches from your videos and they have tasted immensely better. The only problem I have had is how long some of them have taken to clear. I have had a batch sitting for a year and is still cloudy. Not sure if it is something I did, but after watching this I am no longer concerned. I have a question if I am going for a clearer mead, will it affect the quality if I simply let it sit after the fermentation has stopped, or should I rack it to remove the lees and then let it sit after that?

With beer brewing, as you probably know, gelatin is used to clear beer. Works brilliantly, very much like using egg whites to clear a broth/ consommé. Easy and natural and, as far as my simple taste buds can tell, keeps the flavour. Not for vegetarians though.