Salute!

I ran a comparison of two different methods of crushing red grapes- on
stems and off stems- for 192lbs each. From each group I received about
~18 gallons of juice.

The 'stem on fermentation' group is very similiar and tannic to the
'stem off fermentation' with one exception: I have strong bitterness
at the finish.

Gelatin, I hear, is an effective tannin flattener- it takes out both
the bitter and the short chain tannins. I realize it's going to take a
very long time for this wine to mellow out, but I wonder when/if it is
appropriate to start attacking this bitter tannin problem.

I had considered blending some of this Cab with a pail 'merlot' that is
very weak in tannins to better balance out my own blend. I have the
ability to add back Grand Cru tannins purchased from Scott Labs.

Could someone provide me with some feedback for tannin fining schedules
and/if it's regularly done? I'm concerned because newsgroup searches
don't show very many hits...

Thanks in advance-

Jason