Concept
Grape juice is obtained from crushing and blending grapes into a liquid. In the wine industry, grape juice that contains 7–23 percent of pulp, skins, stems and seeds is often referred to as must. The sugars in grape juice allow it to be used as a sweetener, and fermented and made into wine, brandy, or vinegar. In North America, the most common grape juice is purple and made from Concord grapes while white grape juice is commonly made from Niagara grapes, both of which are varieties of native American grapes, a different species from European wine grapes. In California, Sultana (known there as 'Thompson Seedless') grapes are sometimes diverted from the raisin or table market to produce white juice. Grape juice can be made from all grape varieties after reaching appropriate maturity. Because of consumers' preferences for characteristics in colour, flavour and aroma, grape juice is primarily produced from American cultivars of Vitis labrusca. Welch's The method of pasteurizing grape juice to halt fermentation has been attributed to an American physician and dentist, Thomas Bramwell Welch, in 1869. A supporter of the temperance movement, he produced a non-alcoholic wine to be used for church services in his hometown of Vineland, New Jersey. His fellow parishioners continued to prefer and use regular wine. His son, Charles E. Welch, who was also a dentist, eventually gave up his practice to promote grape juice. In 1893, he founded Welch's Grape Juice Company at Westfield, New York. The product was given to visitors at international exhibitions. The oldest extant structure associated with the company is Welch Factory Building No. 1, located at Westfield, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. As the temperance movement grew, so did the popularity of grape juice. In 1913, US Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan served grape juice instead of wine during a full-dress diplomatic function, and in 1914, Josephus Daniels, Secretary of the Navy, forbade any alcoholic drinks on board of naval ships, actively replacing them with grape juice.
