High Sierra Topix

I'm curious to know everyone's methods for getting rid of the taste of heavy tannins in their filtered water. Anything from grin and bear it to adding drink powders. Anyone ever try to use Part B taste-neutralizer from iodine treatment?

Baking soda and water flushed through the filter? Or, white vinegar?
John

What is a "heavy" tannin?

When visiting Australia I wondered about the tannin in the water. It can be quite concentrated in places, sometimes giving the appearance that one is fording a stream of blood. But it never tasted bad to me. It must not be the heavy kind.








The line I heard from the locals was to heat it up, add some milk and sugar, and call it tea.
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John Harper wrote: ↑Mon Sep 24, 2018 6:53 pm Baking soda and water flushed through the filter? Or, white vinegar?
John

I mean in the filtered drinking water itself. Some sources, especially as availability diminishes as it gets later in the season, there's just no getting around it. I'm happy to have water to begin with, but I find myself not staying as hydrated as I should because of the taste, and it's anything but refreshing. There have even been a few times where I've added chlorine dioxide tablets from the emergency kit just to make it taste and smell better than a pile of wet leaves.

longri wrote: ↑Tue Sep 25, 2018 7:31 am What is a "heavy" tannin?

Oh come on, longri. Give me a break.

See pile of wet leaves taste....extremely earthy. A little flavor is fine, but when it gets "heavy" and overwhelming, it's still hydration, but not pleasant. If there's a trick, I'll take it.

Your Platys look like beef broth. Did they taste any better than they look?

It was an honest question. I would guess that there are many types of tannins and their effects on taste could vary. Is it possible that the wet leafy taste is coming from something in addition to the tannins?

The dark water in the photo was stained by eucalyptus bark or leaves. It was good water for drinking.

Are not tannins something that some consider desirable in wine?

So all that work Native Americans went through to pound acorns then leach out the tannins was wasted effort? Hmmm....

Adding the micropur/chlorine dioxide at least takes the edge off.

mrphil wrote: ↑Mon Sep 24, 2018 5:54 pmAnyone ever try to use Part B taste-neutralizer from iodine treatment?

That stuff is just vitamin C. It reacts with iodine to produce.... uh, I forget. My chemistry is really bad. Anyway, just because iodine is brown and tannins are brown doesn't mean they're the same thing or will react with the same substances. I would expect it to not work for tannins.


Have you tried activated charcoal filtration?

Yes, the activated charcoal is what I've been looking at and plan to try. I was hoping to find something that just took care of taste but not necessarily needing to filter out bacteria. Something that screws on to a bottle top. It's not a huge deal, but I was thinking back on a couple trips over the summer where I had to filter some nasty tasting boggy water and wondered if anyone had thoughts.

Thanks.