Juice

What is Juice? Juice is a non-alcoholic beverage made by extracting or pressing the natural liquid from fruits and vegetables, though the term also extends to liquids drawn from other biological sources such as clam juice, as well as drinks flavored with concentrate. Industrial production typically follows a defined sequence of washing, extraction, straining, filtration, blending, pasteurization, filling, cooling, and packing. Properly prepared juice contains negligible alcohol, with an effective ABV of 0% unless it is deliberately fermented into something else, such as wine or cider. The English word itself dates back to around 1300, borrowed from Old French, but the practice of pressing fruit for drink is far older — archaeological evidence of grape juice production includes grape pits dated to roughly 8000 BCE.

Origin and History

Humans have been pressing fruit for liquid for at least ten thousand years, but juice as we know it today is largely a modern invention shaped by preservation technology. Lemonade appeared in 16th-century Italy, and orange juice followed in the 17th century, both initially as fresh preparations consumed close to where the fruit was grown. In the 18th century, James Lind established the link between citrus juice consumption and the prevention of scurvy, giving juice a place in maritime provisioning and early nutritional science.

The decisive shift came in 1869, when Thomas B. Welch developed the pasteurization of grape juice to prevent it from fermenting into wine. This single innovation made shelf-stable juice possible at scale and laid the groundwork for the global juice industry, including the concentrate-based supply chains that dominate the category today.

Production and Labeling

Most commercial juice is produced as concentrate. The fresh juice is heated under vacuum to remove roughly two-thirds of its water, which makes it cheaper to ship and store, and then reconstituted with water before being sold. Under both US and EU rules, a reconstituted product made this way can still legally be called juice.

Labeling categories differ by jurisdiction. Under US FDA rules, fruit juice must be 100% juice, while juice cocktail or juice drink indicates a blended product that may include other ingredients such as high-fructose corn syrup; nectar refers to diluted juice combined with water and sweeteners. EU and UK rules require 100% juice to name the specific fruit on the label, and define nectar as a product containing a minimum of 25 to 50 percent juice depending on the fruit used.

Consumption Today

Juice sits firmly in the non-alcoholic category and is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world, popular both on its own and as a base for mixers, mocktails, and cooking. Per-capita consumption leaders include New Zealand, where intake averages around eight fluid ounces per day, and Colombia, which exceeds six fluid ounces per day.

For a wine and spirits audience, juice is worth understanding on two fronts: as the raw material from which fermented drinks are made, and as the foundation of the non-alcoholic options a well-stocked shop should be able to offer alongside them.