Grape juice
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Grape juice is a fruit juice obtained from crushing grapes. The juice is often fermented and made into wine, brandy, or vinegar. In the wine industry grape juice is often referred to as "must." Grape juice can also be sweetened and preserved as a non-alcoholic beverage. Preserving grape juice requires pasteurization because the unprocessed juice will naturally ferment from yeast on the grapes.
[edit] Content of grape juice
Commercial grape juice and grape juice drinks contain preservatives and coloring, and sometimes vitamins. Like wine, grape juice also contains antioxidants such as flavonoids, providing some health benefits. These antioxidants have been proven beneficial to the skin.
Grape juice in America tastes different than grape juice in Britain and France.
[edit] Welch's Grape Juice
The method of pasteurizing grape juice to halt the fermentation has been attributed to an American physician and dentist, Thomas Bramwell Welch in 1869. A strong supporter of the temperance movement, he produced a non-alcoholic wine to be used for church services in his hometown of Vineland, New Jersey. His fellow parishioners continued to prefer and use regular wine.
His son Charles E. Welch, also a dentist, eventually gave up his practice to promote grape juice, founding Welch's Grape Juice Company. The product was given to visitors at international exhibitions. The company supplied "grapelade" to the military during World War I and advertised aggressively. Development of new grape products and sponsorship of radio and television programs eventually made the company very successful.
