THE BRIDGES VERJUS
by
Pete Anderson

Roman recipes dating back to 71 AD mention an unfermented grape juice called "acresta". It was used throughout the Roman Empire. It was instrumental in the making of mustard (the "must" part is derived from the early stage of grapes during fermentation ) and made Dijon a center of mustard production in Roman times. Today it is called "agresto" in Italian; "agraz" in Spanish and German; "verjus" in French and literally means "green juice".

Verjus is very acidic, but doesn't have the acetic acid that vinegar does which is what clashes with wine. We, the writer and Chef Andy, met early on July 14th at the block of brunello clone Sangiovese grapes near the 10th tee and picked around 200 pounds of unripe grapes. We brought them to my home in Carlsbad where we pressed (see the photo of Chef Andy at the press) the whole cluster grapes producing around eight gallons of juice. The juice was placed in a 15 gallon stainless steel keg and brought back to The Bridges and placed in the refer at 45 degrees F. Six days later, the juice was brought back to Carlsbad where it was sterile filtered to remove any wild yeast left in the juice. Analysis of the juice at this time showed that the sugar content was 12.6 brix (measure of sugar content) . The acid content was pH 2.3 which was between lemon juice (2.0 pH) and vinegar (3.0 pH) exactly where the research indicated it should be.

The taste is tart like sour apples and with a fruity flavor of raspberry lemonade and cranberries. It can be used in sauces, as a condiment on its own, to tenderize meat and to dress salads with. I eagerly await Chef Andy's recipes and artistic culinary delights.

Pete Anderson Wine/Vine Consultant to The Bridges

Back