Think wine, think fruit, and the first thing that springs to mind is, quite naturally, the humble grape. But while grapes are synonymous with white wine, they are far from the only fruit used to make wines. Fruits of every variety imaginable have been used to make red and white wine and a well-crafted fruit wine can be a deliciously refreshing alternative to white wine, especially on a warm summer’s day.
But finding a good fruit wine is not always a quick and easy process. The supermarket shelves are generally not found groaning under the sheer weight of their fruit wine selection and many white wine buyers will not know where to start when it comes to sourcing a bottle.
Let’s consider some of the common or garden fruits that can be used to produce some quite delicious white wine. Perhaps the most popular choice for white wine making purposes is the elderberry. Often used to produce alcohol-freewhite wine, elderberries and elderflowers have been the fruit of choice for many a home wine-maker for centuries. In a climate where white wine grapes don’t flourish to any great extent, the elderberry is a good alternative.
If the notion of elderberry wine has you choking on your Sauvignon Blanc as you recall memories of Grandpa’s home-made elderflower brew, it may be time for a white wine re-evaluation; there are some genuinely delicious wines being made from elderberries and the popular farmers’ markets that are to be found in increasing abundance across the UK’s towns and cities, are often a good place to pick up a bottle. Similarly, it may be possible to pick up bottles of white or rose wine made from other home-grown fruits such as strawberry, raspberry, plum, pear or peach.
Specialist wine stores are also a good place to start on your fruit wine adventure – often being excellent sources of information as well as of the wines themselves.
If you’re not lucky enough to be within shopping distance of a reliable wine supplier, online wine specialists are nothing if not plentiful and many will offer free home delivery and other tempting offers to get you flexing your credit card.
Fruit wine has not escaped the EU restrictions that govern the labelling of bottles of white wine in Europe, so you might need to pay close attention to the bottle when shopping for fruit wine.
A fruit wine, literally speaking, is pretty much any fermented alcoholic drink made from fruits other than grapes. However, in the European Union, the sole word ‘wine‘ refers only to wines made from grapes. The term ‘fruit wine’ indicates that a wine has been made from fruits other than grapes, although, more confusingly, the term ‘country wine‘ is often used to indicate the very same thing. Still more confusingly, British labelling rules dictate that the term ‘made wine’ (as opposed to `un-made’ wine perhaps?) should be used, while the French term ‘Vin de Pays’ (which literally translates as country wine) in fact refers to simple table wines.
Most fruit wine will bear the name of the specific fruit or fruits that it is made from, such as Strawberry Wine or Raspberry Wine, so you should not find any nasty surprises when you open the bottle. Of course, it is also possible to try your hand at making your own fruit wines and green-fingered people often find it extremely satisfying to use their skills in the garden to create fresh and fruity white wines.
Whilst the vast variety of white wines out there are made from white wine grapes, it is perfectly possible, in theory at least, to make palatable white wine from virtually any fruit. Whilst many wine-makers, both amateur and professional, adhere to the principle that sweet fruits make for better wines, carefully-controlled introduction of sweetening agents means that even fruits that tend to be on the tart or even sour side, such as gooseberries and blackcurrants, can make for some very drinkable wines.
Ripe strawberries and juicy peaches and pears will not need much by the way of added sweetness, but sugar or honey are adequate sources of sucrose.
The addition of sweeteners also helps to balance out acidity in the fruits, as there are very few fruits with natural acidity levels that are appropriate to wine-making without a little prod in the right direction. Many fruits found in cooler climates often also lack natural yeast, but amateur white wine makers will find that this is usually easy to remedy with the introduction of yeast nutrient – which can be found in specialist wine making stores and online.
It is worth pointing out that fruit wines very rarely benefit from ageing and most are best drunk within a year of making and bottling.
Image by Craig Hatfield.
