Tomato Wine Is A Real Thing, But It's Not What You'd Expect
If you love a cold glass of wine on a hot summer day, then you might be interested in hearing about a new kind of wine — tomato wine. Tomato wine, just like grape wine, is made by fermenting the fruit (yes, tomato is a fruit!) to create an alcoholic beverage.
Interestingly enough, although tomato wine sounds like it would taste like an alcoholic version of tomato juice, this wine actually has a surprising flavor. Instead, this wine is reported to have a sweet taste with notes of fruit and baking spices.
It's not just the flavor that's interesting about tomato wine, either. The color is also unexpected. Tomato wine is light in color and clear, resembling a Chardonnay or any other classic white grape wine you'd buy. This is because the skin of the tomato doesn't contain coloring agents, so the drink always turns out with a lighter color.
Another surprise about tomato wine is that it's quite high in alcohol content, with some bottles containing up to 16% alcohol. So, you may not want to go back for seconds if you're sipping on a glass of this drink!
How tomato wine came about
Pascale Miche left Belgium and moved his family to Quebec in the 1990s, where they launched a large-scale tomato vineyard for fermenting wine.
However, the origins of creating tomato wine actually started years earlier, in 1938, with a family recipe. It wasn't until the Miches set up a vineyard in Quebec, however, that they began truly dedicating themselves to the trade of brewing tomato wine.
The Miche family named the vineyard Omerto and currently grows six kinds of tomatoes and bottles four types of wine — Omerto Sec, Omerto Moelleux, Omerto Barique Cerisier, and Omerto Acacia.
Those who are interested in visiting the winery can also book guided tours. There, they can learn a bit more about the process of making tomato wine as well as learn about the history of the vineyard itself. Just know that the company keeps its exact recipe a secret, so if you book a visit yourself, you still may not be able to recreate Omerto's unique wines on your own.
Other wines that aren't made from grapes
Tomato wine isn't the only type of wine you can make from unique ingredients. Other winemakers around the globe have tried whipping up this fermented drink from other garden veggies, such as jalapeños.
Jalapeño wine is typically used for cooking, although you can technically drink it straight as well. To make it, winemakers ferment crushed jalapeños with sugar and water. The wine has quite a vinegar flavor with a slightly spicy aftertaste.
Another unique wine that's not made from grapes is mushroom wine. This drink is most commonly enjoyed in Asia, where people have been making it for thousands of years. Mushroom wine has an earthy flavor to it, although it's said to be quite sweet as well.
If mushroom wine isn't your thing, you can try rice wine. Like mushroom wine, this drink originates in Asia and is consumed in China, Japan, and South Korea. Winemakers create this drink by fermenting rice to form a high-alcohol-content drink. Similar to jalapeño wine, this drink has quite a vinegary flavor.