Juicer Vs Press

Is there anything wrong with using a juicer to extract juice from fruit and vegetables for wine? An obvious example being apples, but really I'm curious about just about everything from berries to Zucchini.

I see a few YouTube videos out there showing people using a juicer but i don't see it ever mentioned as an option in any of my wine books. Just wondering if there is a negative to using a juicer that I might not be considering.

Thanks in advance.

Microphobik said:

Is there anything wrong with using a juicer to extract juice from fruit and vegetables for wine? An obvious example being apples, but really I'm curious about just about everything from berries to Zucchini.

I see a few YouTube videos out there showing people using a juicer but i don't see it ever mentioned as an option in any of my wine books. Just wondering if there is a negative to using a juicer that I might not be considering.

Thanks in advance.

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I really prefer the whole fruit, as there are great things in the skins/pulp that make the wine fuller and richer, and provide body. Juice wines can be fine, but rather "thin" and without complexity.

Skins, like on grapes or chokecherries, provide tannin. Pulp, like in apples, provide body and a fullness of flavor. You can fake some of that with powdered tannin and maybe some raisins for body and richness of flavor, but it's not the same.

Think of your own experiences, like with grape jelly vs a grape. (Ignore the sugar content of the jelly, of course). There are just some great things brought to the wine by fermenting a portion of the time on the skins/pulp/seeds that can make a decent wine really great.

Thanks, that makes perfect sense. Because I don't have a press, do you think I'd do we'll to use the juicer and then add the pulp back in to the primary with a strainer bag or cheese cloth? Or might that create some problem I haven't thought of?

Microphobik said:

Thanks, that makes perfect sense. Because I don't have a press, do you think I'd do we'll to use the juicer and then add the pulp back in to the primary with a strainer bag or cheese cloth? Or might that create some problem I haven't thought of?

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You can definitely place the juiced pulp in straining bags and add to primary. Nylon knee-hi pantyhose work well, plus they are disposable...just use a wide mouth funnel like you use in canning. But you can successfully ferment whole fruit without going thru juicing. Almost every fruit breaks down due to fermentation, and not many need crushing/grinding like grapes-apples-pears. Straining bags, jelly bags, nylon pantyhose--very useful. You can even use paint straining bags & many just dispose of after use. Cheesecloth is a PITA unless you use butter muslin, the bags are simpler.

Thanks very much. If anyone has had any specific good or bad experiences with using a juicer to make wine I'd love to hear them.

Thanks again.

I jave usrd a juicer for my apple wine, it came outgood. There was some pulp in the juice and it cleared nicely