Fruit Wine
Fruit wine can be quite confusing at first. One would wonder why fruits would have their separate category when it comes to wine, given that grapes are also fruits. Questions such as ‘Aren’t grapes fruits too? Then what’s the difference?’ tend to come up when it comes to fruit wine, but there is an explanation as to all this. However, before we get into that, let’s delve into production:
The Process
The great thing about fruit wine is that there are few restrictions. You can make it use any plant that can undergo fermentation so have your pick and get to it. You can extract the flavour and juice using many methods. The most common ones are pressing the juice, fermenting fruit pulps and stewing the fruit pulps. You can use sucrose to maintain the sugar levels. You’ll probably have to make alterations at every stage to ensure that the mix matches that you would get whenusing grapes such as the addition of yeast nutrients and water.
What's the Variation?
When we talk about wine, we are speaking of a drink that is the result of yeast working on the sugars present in fruit. Going by this definition, then you can use any fruit to produce wine. The problem comes in when it comes down to making a delicious drink out of fruits, save for grape, as it tends to be a complicated process. As things stand, any drink marketed as wine must have grapes. If not, it must state that the wine contains other fruits.
Standard wines, like Red, White and Rose, generally have alcohol contents of about 13%. However, fruit wines will average about 11%. Thus, the former option has more alcoholic content than the latter. It is important to note though that these numbers can vary slightly, depending on the product in question.
And while we are at it, it is necessary to state that other than fruits, you can also make wine from other items such as potatoes. Though unusual, these other types of wine have come into the market in recent years, and people have taken to them. It’s good news for you as this means that you have lots of options. Back to the differences:
Seeing as most fruits are viable options when it comes to making wine, why is it that grapes seem to have the upper hand when it comes to production for commercial purposes? Well, it all comes down to the makeup of each fruit. Wine for one has a perfect balance when it comes to the necessary components in production such as sugar as well as compounds on which the yeast can act. It is thus easy to create a stable and delicious drink with grapes.
When it comes to other fruits, there is a lot that needs to happen for one to create a drink that people can think of as sumptuous. From the addition of water to the reduction of acidity all the way to the need for extra yeast nutrients, there is a lot that wine-makers need to do to create good fruit wine. For this reason, wine-makers tend to lean on the grape side, thus giving it dominance in the market.
Many people often ask whether this wine is worth all the efforts geared towards its success and the answer is yes. When done right, this wine will blow your mind.
Here are some of the fruit wines you are likely to come across on the market:
Strawberry Wine
This anthocyanin-rich drink is perfect for the summer holidays. A tip when drinking this wine is that you should take it immediately after the corkscrew comes loose. Letting the wine sit will make you miss out on its sweetness.
Apple Wine
This fruit is quite versatile and can make wine as well as other products such as apple cider, dry wines, and ice wine. It has complex flavours which make it great for a refreshing drink when the temperatures get hot.
Eldenberry Wine
This full-bodied wine is rich in tannins and boasts of a ton of antioxidants. Drinking it has its share of health benefits, and you get to enjoy its sweet taste as well.
Other favourite fruit wine drinks include blackberry wine and cranberry wine. The options are limitless when it comes to what you can use to craft this wine. As such, have fun exploring the different varieties!