Homemade Grape Water Without the Wine

Health Benefits of Grapes

If your family does not drink wine or grape juice because of the high sugar content, and inebriating effects of alcohol, as it turns to sugar in the body; you will still be able to enjoy anti-oxidant rich, immune-system boosting grape water. Homemade grape water is a favorite at our household, ensuring all the health benefits, without the detrimental side-effects of sugar or alcohol.

I discovered the secret to grape water when I moved into a home with a few grapevines. We would gather all the dark purple grapes in the fall, pulling off leaves, and spiraling stems, preparing to rinse in large cooking pots. Initially several rinsings were required to remove dust and debris, as I noticed the water turning pink.

How to Make Grape Water

Once the grapes were rinsed clean, they were then bathed in drinking water, and allowed to sit for several days as their water turned red, waiting until I had time to fish out the grapes. This naturally-occurring red-colored water contains much of the antioxidants found in grapes, is extremely bland to the taste, but is great for cooking, as explained later.

Grape Juice Concentrate from the Juicer

The next step was to cut each grape open, remove the seeds, and send handfuls of seedless grapes through the juicer. The pulp can also be used (explained next) as long as the seeds are removed before juicing.

After juicing the grapes, you will notice that it is much sweeter than the grape water, and can be frozen in ice cube trays to mix with water as you would concentrate, or blended in smoothies. The grape juice concentrate can also be mixed with the grape water for a naturally sweet fruit juice.

How to Use Grape Pulp

After juicing the pitted grapes, retrieve the grape pulp from the juicer basket, for super-sweet grape puree. Layer the grape puree in cookie bars, over cheesecake, and bake inside breakfast muffins.

You can also cook the pulp down, into grape jam, without adding any extra sugar. Use your homemade jam in sandwiches, over ice cream, or added to oatmeal for natural sweetness.

Cooking with Grape Water

If you find the grape water too bland to drink, then use it as a meat marinade and tenderizer. Pour over roasts, or poultry before cooking, season as you normally would, and when it is done, you will have extremely tender meat. It falls off the bones, and tastes as if cooked in wine; but you can assure everyone there wasn't any alcohol used.