🥃 Grape must
Also known as: must
Freshly pressed grape juice with skins and seeds, from which wine is made.
Grape must is freshly pressed grape juice with skins and seeds. It is what wine is made from.
Must is obtained after the berries are crushed and pressed. It contains a lot of sugar, usually 170-250 g/L. When yeast starts work, the must becomes fermenting must and then wine. Juice that runs off by itself is called free-run must. Juice obtained under the press is press must. They differ slightly in taste and composition.
Must is used for more than wine. It can be thickened to make concentrated must. From it and from grape juice, churchkhela is made, a Georgian sweet on a string with nuts. Unlike ordinary grape juice, must often stays together with the skins and pulp. If left uncontrolled, it will ferment on its own. The sweetness of must depends on the grape, the ripeness of the berries and the weather in the harvest year.
How it connects to Wine
🥃 Grape must ← made from ← 🍷 Wine
Links
- Previous step
- 🍷 Crushing, 🌿 Grape, 🌿 Grape pulp
- What is made from it
- 🍷 Wine, 🍷 Semi-sparkling wine
- Part of
- 🥃 Grape products
- Similar and different
- 🍷 Partially fermented grape must, 🥃 Grape juice, 🥃 Concentrated grape must, 🥃 Churchkhela
Frequently asked questions
Is it true that must is the same as grape juice from a shop?
Not quite. Must often stays with the skins, pulp and seeds and is meant for fermentation.
What is the difference between free-run and press must?
Free-run must runs off by itself; press must comes from the press. They differ slightly in taste and composition.
What does the sweetness of must depend on?
The grape, the ripeness of the berries and the weather in the harvest year.
What to read next
- 🍷 Crushing — Lightly breaking the berries to split the skins and release the juice without crushing seeds or stems.
- 🍷 Semi-sparkling wine — EU categories 8 and 9: 1–2.5 bar of carbon dioxide and at least 7 % actual alcohol; frizzante, Perlwein, pétillant.
- 🥃 Concentrated grape must — Grape must with some of its water evaporated; it is used to sweeten wine.
- 🍷 Partially fermented grape must — An EU category: grape juice that has started fermenting but has not yet become wine.
- 🌿 Grape pulp — The juicy middle of the berry, holding sugar and acids.
Similar
🥃 Pelamushi · 🥃 Grape juice · 🥃 Verjuice · 🥃 Wine vinegar · 🥃 Grape rakia · 🥃 Grape syrup
⚠️ Wine contains alcohol: adults only, drink in moderation. Wine usually contains sulphites; egg white or milk proteins are sometimes used for fining — important for allergies and for vegans.