Bentonite followed by Sparkolloid

[bushpilot]

I have three meads that are about 3 months since pitch. A raspberry mel, a chokecherry mel, and a traditional, all around 12-13% abv. All have been done fermenting (per the hydrometer) for a while, and have been racked twice (to secondary, then again).

The traditional and the raspberry have been very hazy and have quit dropping lees, the chokecherry was doing better. I used pectic enzyme in the primary for the two mels.

Getting impatient, I decided to use bentonite followed by sparkolloid. I made up the bentonite slurry and put 2 tablespoons of the slurry (gallon batches) in each of them about 48 hours ago.

As of today, they are clearing much faster. There is about 1/2 - 3/4 inch of lees on the bottoms, whereas before there was maybe 1/8 inch after sitting for maybe a month in a cool area (upper 40s) of the house. Interestingly, the chokecherry mel that I thought was almost clear has the same quantity of lees as the others after the bentonite. They are all visibly clearer, though still not clear by any stretch.

I intend to use sparkolloid next, if needed. Which leads to the questions:

1) Do I rack between the bentonite and the sparkolloid, or can I minimize racking losses by not racking between?
2) How long should I wait before the sparkolloid?
3) How long can the meads sit with the finnings before racking?

Feel free to comment on what I have done already, I am trying to learn. Also, I am aware that time might have cleared the mead; when I get a few more meads in the pipeline, I will let them sit longer.

Thanks for your input!

Greg

 

[Pappers_]

I am not a mead maker, but hopefully my commenting might lift this back up to the top of the forum and someone else can pipe in.

As for #3, when I make wine, I usually let the wine sit on the finings for about two weeks, after degassing.

For #1, I don't think you have to.

I have no idea about #2.

 

[bushpilot]

Well, here is what I did in the end. I left it 5-6 days with the bentonite, then added the sparkolloid, without racking between. Then it went into the fridge for cold crashing. And today, two days later, it is starting to really clear.

 

[Jag75]

I've never used sparkolloid nor have I heard of it . Only made mead 2 times . I did use bentonite though. I was amazed how clear it got . One thing I did learn was I should have used sulfite and sorbate before I stuck it in the fridge because that stuff is a booger to dissolve fully.

 

[bushpilot]

Racked off the sparkolloid/bentonite and bottled today. Maybe a little early, but it was very clear. We''ll see if anything further settles out in the bottles.