Using dried bananas for Body

[The forager]

Is it possible to use dried bananas (with the skin) to add body to a wine? Will it have the same result as fresh?

 

[Jacob_Marley]

technically, yes you "could" use dried bananas ... no I would not use them with the skins.
Banana skins have chemicals (pesticides etc) on them ... even the "organic" type do. Its just the things that have to be done to protect the investment in a commercial crop. This goes for fresh and dried.

Only if I knew the grower and could verify there was no spraying *might* I use the skins.

Furthermore, who did the drying and how? I'd be concerned about spoilage microorganisms.

I'd just go buy some fresh bananas and discard the skins.

Having to dump a batch is a bummer.

 

[The forager]

Thanks. I dried them myself as I dry many foods, using a dehydrator. A lot of people advise adding skins to the wine to add body and I have done it myself.

It’s more the dried aspect I am asking about. Will it give the same body to the wine?

 

[McMullan]

I've never really considered banana skins to be comparable with grape skins. Don't tell me David Heath's taken up wine making?

 

[Jacob_Marley]

Thanks. I dried them myself as I dry many foods, using a dehydrator. A lot of people advise adding skins to the wine to add body and I have done it myself.

It’s more the dried aspect I am asking about. Will it give the same body to the wine?

Yes it will.
However, generally when vinting with bananas you should pretreat the must using pectinase and amylase to hydrolyze the pectin and starch in the bananas. If you are using little banana-by-volume, you can get away without this ... however if you end up with haze (or even a gloppy haze - pectin) in your wine, you'll know why.

You can also use these enzymes to treat after fermentation if you get haze ... you would treat the wine, bulk age to let the haze precipitate out, and re-rack.

Pectin problems are more common. Starch haze is a bigger problem with bananas that are not absolutely ripe. And both are a much bigger issue when vinting straight banana wine.

 

[The forager]

.

Yes it will.
However, generally when vinting with bananas you should pretreat the must using pectinase and amylase to hydrolyze the pectin and starch in the bananas. If you are using little banana-by-volume, you can get away without this ... however if you end up with haze (or even a gloppy haze - pectin) in your wine, you'll know why.

You can also use these enzymes to treat after fermentation if you get haze ... you would treat the wine, bulk age to let the haze precipitate out, and re-rack.

Pectin problems are more common. Starch haze is a bigger problem with bananas that are not absolutely ripe. And both are a much bigger issue when vinting straight banana wine.

So one dried banana added to say Pear wine would cause a haze?

 

[Jacob_Marley]

.

So one dried banana added to say Pear wine would cause a haze?

like I say, it depends on the volume of the wine
to a 5 gallon carboy ... not likely much of a problem
to a 1 gallon jug ... possibly
at worst you'd have to clarify it or drink it hazy