Fruit wines in India: jamun, mango, pineapple and the rules

Why fruit wine is different from grape wine

Wine grapes are almost uniquely suited to fermentation. They carry enough sugar for 12 to 14% alcohol, enough acid to keep the wine stable and enough nutrients for yeast. Most other fruit is missing at least one of these.

A fruit winemaker therefore adjusts the juice or pulp before fermentation: adding sugar, adjusting acid, breaking down pectin and feeding the yeast. Our guide to how wine is made covers the basic process. This guide focuses on what changes with tropical fruit.

Sugar and acid: the first measurements

Measure sugar with a refractometer or hydrometer as degrees Brix and measure acid by titration before you plan anything. As a working rule, about 17 g/L of fermentable sugar gives 1% alcohol by volume.

• If the fruit does not carry enough sugar for your target strength, add cane sugar to make up the difference. This is called chaptalisation.
• Low-acid fruit gives flat, unstable wine that spoils easily. Add tartaric, citric or malic acid in measured steps and taste as you go.
• High-acid fruit can be balanced by dilution with water or by blending with a lower-acid fruit, where local rules allow.

Jamun, mango and pineapple

• Jamun. The Indian blackberry, or Java plum, has deep purple skin, natural tannin and an astringent bite. It makes a red-style wine with real colour. Its sugar is usually low, so most recipes add sugar. The tannin softens with time, so jamun wine often benefits from a few months of ageing before release.
• Mango. Very aromatic, with plenty of sugar in ripe Alphonso, Totapuri or Kesar fruit, but low acid and a thick, pectin-rich pulp. Acid adjustment and pectic enzyme are almost always needed. Mango aroma fades fast after fermentation, so cool fermentation and early bottling help.
• Pineapple. Bright, high acid and juicy, with moderate sugar. It ferments readily and gives a tropical, fresh wine. Watch for sulphur aromas if yeast nutrition is poor.

Whatever the fruit, buy it ripe, sound and in one consistent lot. Damaged or fermenting fruit from the bottom of a crate brings acetic bacteria and wild yeast into the tank. Other fruits used in Indian fruit wines include lychee, cashew apple, plum, kiwi and strawberry, each with its own sugar and acid profile.

Pectin, nutrients and yeast

Many tropical fruits are rich in pectin, which holds juice in the pulp and leaves permanent haze. Add pectic enzyme to the crushed fruit and give it time to work, usually some hours at room temperature, before pressing or fermenting on the pulp.

Fruit juice is often short of the yeast-available nitrogen that grape juice provides. A hungry yeast ferments slowly and makes hydrogen sulphide, the rotten egg smell. Add yeast nutrient in stages during the first third of fermentation. Use a wine yeast chosen for the style. Control fermentation temperature too. In Indian heat an uncontrolled ferment can climb well above 25 °C and strip the fruit aroma that made the wine worth making.

Stability after fermentation

Fruit wines spoil for the same reasons grape wines do: oxygen and microbes. They are often more vulnerable because they start lower in acid and alcohol. Protect them with measured sulphur dioxide, full containers and clean equipment. If you plan to leave sweetness in the wine, you need a way to stop yeast restarting in the bottle, such as sterile filtration or a stabilising additive permitted under food safety rules.

Brewers moving into fruit wine will find much of this familiar. Our guide to starting a cider line in India covers a closely related product.

The rules for fruit wineries

Fruit wine production in India is regulated by state excise departments and by food safety standards. Several states have created policies to encourage fruit wineries, while others treat fruit wine much like grape wine or have no specific route.

At a process level, a fruit winery typically needs a manufacturing licence from the state excise department, food safety registration or licence, approved premises and equipment, label registration and permits for selling within or outside the state. Rules, fees and timelines vary by state and change, so check the current notification or use a licensing consultant. Our guide to planning a small winery in India goes into the planning steps.