Industries
Wine Production
Enological-grade fining agent for protein stabilization and wine clarification. Must treatment for juice settling and Botrytis-affected fruit. Food-grade certified for beer, juice, and beverage clarification. Serving wineries from Georgia to Western Europe and beyond.
Key Applications
How Bentonite is Used
Wine Fining & Protein Stabilization (Enological Grade Bentonite)
Protein Haze Removal Bentonite carries a strong negative electrostatic charge that attracts and binds positively charged proteins suspended in wine. Once bound, the bentonite-protein complexes become too heavy to remain in suspension and settle to the bottom, leaving wine clear, bright, and heat-stable for bottling.
Heat Stability Unstable proteins in wine denature and aggregate when exposed to elevated temperatures during storage and transport, causing irreversible haze in bottled wine. Bentonite fining is the industry-standard method for achieving protein stability — the treated wine passes heat stability tests (turbidity increase < 2.0 NTU after heating at 80°C for 6 hours).
Clarification & Brightness Beyond protein removal, bentonite fining drags out yeast cells, tannin particles, and other colloidal material that cause persistent cloudiness. The result is a wine with glassy clarity, radiant color, and improved visual appeal at point of sale.
Dosages:
- White wines (post-fermentation): 25–75 g/hL (0.25–0.75 g/L)
- Rosé wines: 20–60 g/hL
- Juice settling (pre-fermentation): 50–120 g/hL
- During fermentation: up to 36 g/hL (CO₂ provides natural circulation)
- Bench trial recommended for each wine lot to optimize dosage
Target customers: Wineries (small, medium, and large-scale), wine cooperatives, enological product distributors, home winemaking supply companies.
Must Treatment & Juice Settling (Sodium Bentonite)
Pre-Fermentation Juice Clarification Bentonite added to grape must compacts lees during cold settling, producing cleaner juice for fermentation without the need for enzymatic settling agents. Protein extraction from pulp during long settling times is reduced by 30–50% when bentonite is present, resulting in wines that require less fining at bottling.
Laccase Removal in Botrytis-Affected Fruit Bentonite binds and removes laccase — a polyphenol oxidase enzyme produced by Botrytis cinerea — from infected grape must. This prevents uncontrolled oxidative browning and preserves the color and freshness of wines made from affected vintages.
Fermentation Enhancement When added at the start of fermentation, bentonite settles to the bottom and is repeatedly circulated through the wine by CO₂ bubbles. Each trip captures suspended particles, effectively clarifying wine during fermentation and reducing total fining time by days or weeks.
Application methods:
- Slurry preparation: rehydrate bentonite in 3–5× volume of hot water (60°C) for 4–24 hours
- Juice settling: add slurry after initial gravity settling, stir gently
- Fermentation addition: add rehydrated bentonite to primary fermenter before yeast
- Contact time: 5–10 days settling, then rack off lees
Target customers: White wine producers, sparkling wine houses, rosé specialists, wineries processing Botrytis-affected fruit, bulk wine producers requiring rapid clarification.
Beverage Clarification — Beer, Juice & Spirits (Food Grade Bentonite)
Beer Chill Haze Prevention Bentonite removes chill-haze-causing proteins from beer without affecting head retention or foam stability. Treatment during cold conditioning produces brilliantly clear beer that remains haze-free through cold chain distribution and retail display.
Fruit Juice Clarification Bentonite adsorbs positively charged proteins and suspended particles from apple, grape, pear, and other fruit juices. Treatment produces sparkling-clear juice with extended shelf stability, reducing microbial risk and improving visual appeal for retail consumers.
Spirits & Mead Polishing Low-dose bentonite treatment removes residual haze-forming compounds from mead, cider, and distilled spirits without stripping flavor or color. Effective as both a standalone treatment and a first-stage fining followed by polishing agents like isinglass or Sparkolloid.
Typical dosages:
- Beer: 10–30 g/hL
- Fruit juice: 20–80 g/hL
- Mead and cider: 25–75 g/hL
- Food-grade compliance: meets EU Regulation 2019/934, OIV standards, FDA GRAS
Target customers: Craft and industrial breweries, fruit juice manufacturers, cideries and meaderies, spirits producers, beverage clarification equipment suppliers.
Our Products
Recommended Products for This Industry
Select the right bentonite grade for your specific application needs.
Benefits
Why Choose Askangel Bentonite
Advantages of Askangel Bentonite for Wine Production
High Montmorillonite Content 98.5% montmorillonite delivers maximum protein adsorption capacity per gram of bentonite. This means lower dosage requirements (20–40% less than competitors at 70–85% montmorillonite), resulting in smaller lees volumes and reduced wine loss per treatment.
Minimal Flavor & Aroma Impact High purity ensures bentonite settles out completely, leaving no residual taste, odor, or color in treated wine. Clean, thorough settling produces compact lees, maximizing recoverable wine volume — critical for premium producers where every liter matters.
Rapid Hydration & Easy Preparation Askangel enological bentonite disperses quickly in hot water (60°C) with minimal clumping, forming a uniform slurry ready for use within 4–6 hours. Fast hydration reduces preparation time and ensures consistent fining performance across production runs.
Food-Grade Certified Askangel wine-grade bentonite is certified for food contact under EU Regulation 2019/934 for oenological practices and complies with International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) resolution specifications. Free from heavy metal contamination — independently tested for lead, arsenic, cadmium, and mercury.
Quality Consistency Vintage to Vintage Askangel controls the entire cycle: proprietary deposit → enrichment → drying → micronization. Each batch is laboratory-tested for swelling capacity, protein adsorption efficiency, settling rate, and purity before shipment — ensuring predictable fining results across vintages.
Flexible Logistics Available in 25 kg bags (standard winery format), big bags (500 kg, 1000 kg) for large-scale producers, and custom packaging for enological product distributors. FOB Poti, DAP to your winery or warehouse, CIF to destination port.
Applications by Wine Type and Beverage
White Wines:
- Protein stabilization for Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Riesling, Pinot Grigio
- Must settling and juice clarification before fermentation
- Heat stability treatment for warm-climate wines prone to protein haze
- Pre-bottling polishing for crystal-clear presentation
Rosé & Sparkling Wines:
- Rosé wine clarification (protein removal without excessive color stripping)
- Base wine treatment for Méthode Traditionnelle and Charmat sparkling wines
- Disgorgement preparation for sparkling wine riddling
- Pét-Nat and natural wine minimal-intervention fining
Red Wines (Selective Use):
- Off-aroma removal (H₂S, reductive characters) in low-dose applications
- Must treatment for Botrytis-affected red varieties (laccase removal)
- Combined fining protocols (bentonite + gelatin or egg albumin)
- Note: use carefully in reds — high doses can strip color and tannin
Other Beverages:
- Craft and industrial beer (chill haze protein removal)
- Apple, grape, and pear juice clarification
- Mead and cider fining
- Honey wine and fruit wine clarification
Global Reach
Export Geography
CIS: Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Moldova, Ukraine
Applications: domestic and export wine fining for Georgian traditional and European-style winemaking, must treatment for qvevri and conventional fermentation, juice clarification for fruit wine producers.
Europe: Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece
Applications: enological-grade bentonite for protein stabilization in large-scale and boutique wineries, EU-compliant food-grade certification for major wine-producing regions, sparkling wine base treatment.
Middle East & Africa: Turkey, Israel, South Africa, Egypt
Applications: wine fining for warm-climate viticulture (high protein instability), juice and beverage clarification for fruit processing industries, beer and mead production support.
Americas & Oceania: USA, Chile, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand
Applications: high-purity bentonite supply for New World wine regions with premium quality requirements, enological product distribution networks, craft beverage industry support.
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