Baby, don’t hurt me, don’t hurt me no more talking about wine from oranges, mangos or tears of a raccoon.
Because at this point my inner sommelier starts to cut the veins. Of those who thinks so, of course.
Wine is an alcoholic drink made of grapes. That’s it. Point. End of a story.
It is certain, that we can obtain other beverages from other fruits and vegetables. If we are lucky enough those beverages would be even alcoholic. But at least in the main wine-producing countries their drinks may not be called wine by legislation.
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Let’s look up a formal explanation of the term.
“Wine is an alcoholic drink beverage received by means of a full or partial alcoholic fermentation of fresh grapes or grape must”.
So many weird words, huh?
In reality is not so complicated.
Must is a grape juice received by enforcing or natural (by gravity) pressing of grapes.
Alcoholic fermentation is a process when grape juice turns to an alcoholic drink thanks to wine yeast eating the sugar in the grapes thus producing ethanol and gas (carbon dioxide).
Sure thing, fermentation is the process that could happen and happens to rice, fruits, vegetables, even tea bags.
Let’s call it rice wine, fruit wine, etc. in order not to hurt the feelings of European winemakers working day and night to provide us with their excellent (grape) wines!