how to can concentrated grape juice

how to can concentrated grape juice

Walking by the grapes on the vine in the yard, you know when they are done and it’s time to make juice.  It smells like grape juice outside!  We have two vines and we will process one and then the other.  We make concentrated grape juice from the one vine along with grape jelly.  The other we will share with friends and make quick grape juice.

Making grape juice is not an easy process.  You will need a food mill or a Kitchen Aid (with attachments) to help speed the process along.  The Kitchen Aid can get jammed up with seeds and we end up taking it apart after processing 2 cups of grapes.  The seeds are a beast to get through it and you have to run the machine slowly or you could bind it up and possibly break it.  So low and slow is the key and lots of cleaning.

We’ve created a video on how we canned the grapes.

What you’ll need:
clean washed concord grapes (stems and twigs removed)
sugar
quart jars
white sugar (1/4 – 1/2 cup per jar – optional)
sterilized seals and bands
water bath canner
food mill or electric fruit and vegetable strainer
fine mesh bag (if you want to hug and squeeze the grapes)

how to can grape juice

You will want to take your cleaned grapes and run them through your food mill or if you have a Kitchen Aid mixer or another mixer with a strainer, this is going to make this a lot quicker.

Grind the grapes up, separating from the seeds and extracting the juice into a large bowl.

If you are using the electric strainer, you will want to run at a slow speed.  The seeds can bind up. You will also want to clean out the strainer after running through about 2 cups or it will stop working.

Once the grapes have been run through, you can run the juice through the mesh strainer.  Depending on how much pulp you want in your juice.

Take the juice and heat it until it is 190 degrees F. Remove from heat once this is done.

how to make grape jelly

Take the sterilized jars and add 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup sugar (if desired) to each jar.

Add grape juice into each jar, leaving 1″ head space (straining again if desired).

Place a sterilized seal and hand tighten band on each jar.

Place hot jars into hot water bath canner, with 1 inch of water over the jars.

Process for 10 minutes.

Remove the jars from the heat and allow to cool.

Write the date and that it’s concentrated grape juice on the label or seal.