Sparkeloid fail???

[nitack]

Hi all, looking for some fining agent advice. I have never used a fining agents before, but I have some mead that just won't clear. It is four gallons, mixed honey sources with some chamomile and lemon. It has been done fermenting for over a year. I just added sparkaloid because I was ready to bottle it and start another project. The sparkaloid did nothing. It's not hazy, just not clear. Don't have pictures and I'm out of town at the moment, but there is nothing odd looking about it. It is just not clearing and I was shocked when the fining agent failed. Thoughts?

 

[Yooper]

Hi all, looking for some fining agent advice. I have never used a fining agents before, but I have some mead that just won't clear. It is four gallons, mixed honey sources with some chamomile and lemon. It has been done fermenting for over a year. I just added sparkaloid because I was ready to bottle it and start another project. The sparkaloid did nothing. It's not hazy, just not clear. Don't have pictures and I'm out of town at the moment, but there is nothing odd looking about it. It is just not clearing and I was shocked when the fining agent failed. Thoughts?

Finings work by attracting particles of the opposite charge, and then they are heavier so they fall out.

Sparkelloid works great on some things, like dandelion wine, or when there is a negatively charged particulate causing the haze (as sparkelloid is positively charged).

The problem then becomes figuring out what is causing the haze! Yeast, pectin, tannin, protein, etc. Using the wrong fining can actually make a haze work, if it's the same charge.

What some people do is to use something like SuperKleer (KC finings). It is a double whammy- a positively charged agent, and a negatively charged agent, added back to back.

What I would try first it to put the mead someplace cold. Ideally, 31 degrees- but if you can drop the temperature even 10 degrees, it may clear the mead up without any further finings or problems.