North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Don Yellman <don.yellman@webformation.com>]

Rob:

I have made quite a bit of this cherry wine over the years, using pure or nearly pure 
cherry juice after straining out the pits and skins, and can assure you it does not 
taste like cough syrup, nor is it sour at the rate of 10 lbs. sugar/5 gallons.  I don't 
think it would be sour even with less sugar, since the cherries themselves contain 
quite a quantity of fructose.  The Montmorency tart cherry is not really 
"sour" in the usual sense of that word, and many people, including children, 
will eat them quite happily right off the tree.  Without this tart character, cherry 
wine would truly be insipid.

Having said that, I agree that it is not necessary to use pure cherry juice 
in winemaking.  It will still make wine.

Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA  
--
Please note that my email address has changed.  It is now 
don.yellman@webformation.com