Suspended solids: an adjustable measure, not dirt

The standard

The adjusted must turbidity regards suspended solids not as contamination but as a controllable measure: too little starves the fermentation, too much yields unclean notes.

Criteria

• The solids content is measured, not estimated
• Coarse and fine solids act differently on fermentation and aroma
• A minimum feeds the yeast, an excess burdens the taste
• After fermentation, clarification lowers the remaining share

Distinction

Suspended solids ≠ haze in wine: the solids are the particles themselves, a haze their visible result in the finished wine. Suspended solids ≠ sediment: sediment is the deliberately accepted deposit of aged wines, suspended solids a stage of winemaking. The adjusted must turbidity separates useful load from disturbing burden.