Kalinat is a potassium-hydrogen-carbonate and is used principally for the fine de-acidification of young wine. For improving quality or rounding off of flavour (according to the flavour type) as well as for its ease of handling, Kalinat is the material to use.

With the addition of Kalinat the existing tartaric acid falls out as potassium-hydrogen-tartrate, while with Kalk de-acidification calcium-tartrate is crystalised out. As potassium-hydrogen-tartrate is removed considerably faster in the cold, or by using Kali-Kontakt (add 4 g/l Kali-Kontakt at 0 °C) a very fast stabilization can be achieved and the wine will be ready to bottle in a much shorter time. Possibly the cooling can be done by the Winter cold. However, if the wine stays at cellar temperature, the crystallizing out will take several weeks. With Kalk at least 6 weeks must be allowed.

For the precipitation of 1 g of tartaric acid 0.67 g/l of Kalinat should be used. Kalinat can be added directly to the wine. The mixing must be done with care because of the escaping carbonic acid.

As in this stage of the wine there is less tartaric acid, a large amount of de-acidification can lead to an increased pH value. For this reason an analytical test of the total-acid and tartaric-acid should be carried out before a wine de-acidification. From that the possible amount of de-acidification is known, without the tartaric-acid being too strongly reduced and the pH value too strongly increased. Without the aforementioned test the amount of de-acidification should, for the sake of safety, not exceed 2 g/l. The final acid value which has been calculated will only be reached after the complete crystallising-out of the potassium-hydrogen-tartrates, that is after the appropriate time in store or after the use of cooling or the use of Kontakt. If, after using the Kalinat, the total acid is not assessed to reach the complete decrease in acid as worked out, then nevertheless the acid neutralisation required is already partly achieved. Merely the crystallising-out has not yet fully taken place. With wines with very stable tartrate crystals (especially with a low potassium content) and a low Kalinat de-acidification, e.g. of 0.5 to 1 g/l, it is always possible that no tartrate crystals at all fall out and so they will not reach the analytical value which was aimed for. Taste-wise, however the required acid correction is there. The acid is only relevantly absent in the taste.

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