Grapes halved, seeded and simmered in water with sugar, then cooled and strained. A cooked juice rather than a blended one, which is what concentrates the flavour.
A cooked juice, not a blended one
Almost every juice on this site goes into a blender. This one goes into a pot, and that is worth understanding before you decide it is more work than it needs to be.
Twenty minutes of simmering does three things a blender cannot. It breaks the fruit down completely, so nothing is left suspended. It pulls the colour and tannin out of the skins, which is where most of what tastes like grape juice lives. And it drives off some water, concentrating what is left.
It also means it keeps. A blended fruit juice separates into layers within an hour; this one holds for days in the fridge.
Take the seeds out first
The first step halves the grapes and removes the seeds, and it is the step people skip because there is a strainer at the end.
The strainer is too late. Grape seeds are bitter, and twenty minutes of simmering extracts that bitterness into the water where it stays. Taking them out afterwards removes the seeds and not the flavour they left behind.
Seedless grapes make this step disappear.
Cool it completely
The last step says to let it cool, strain and serve over ice, and each part depends on the one before.
Straining hot pushes soft pulp through the mesh and clouds the juice. Pouring hot juice over ice melts it on contact and dilutes everything you just spent twenty minutes concentrating.
The fridge is the easiest route. It also tastes noticeably better cold.
The sugar goes in late
Five tablespoons, added after the grapes have already cooked for fifteen or twenty minutes rather than at the start.
By then the fruit has released its own sweetness into the water, so you can judge how much is actually needed. Added at the beginning it would be a guess.
More juices
- Limonada cerezada — blended with ice.
- Tree tomato juice — tomate de árbol.
- Pineapple juice — blended and strained.
- Colombian limonada — with the whole lime.
Grape Juice FAQ
Twenty minutes of simmering breaks the fruit down, pulls the colour out of the skins and concentrates the flavour in a way a blender cannot. It also keeps for several days rather than separating within the hour.
Yes. Grape seeds are bitter and twenty minutes of simmering pulls that bitterness straight into the liquid. Straining afterwards does not undo it.
Yes, and it saves the first step entirely. Halve them anyway so they break down faster.
Hot juice poured over ice melts it immediately and leaves you with something watery, and straining while hot pushes pulp through the sieve and clouds the juice.
Several days in the fridge, which is the advantage of cooking it. A blended juice separates within an hour.
Either. Red gives the colour people expect from grape juice; green gives something paler and slightly sharper.
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
- 500 g grapes (halved and seeded)
- 5 tablespoons sugar
- 1200 ml water
- Ice (to serve)
Notas
Instructions
- Wash the grapes, cut them in half and take the seeds out.
- Heat the water in a pot and add the grapes.
- Let it cook for 15 to 20 minutes, then add the sugar and stir until it dissolves.
- Let it cool completely, strain it, and serve over ice.
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