# Why no orange wine? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 15, 2000, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560 "2000-05-15T13:50:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/1 "2000-05-15T13:50:45Z")
A co-worker was cleaning out the office refrigerator and found some OJ that had passed its prime. Someone made the remark that perhaps we should add a little sugar, let it ferment, and make orange wine. Which leads me to the question: Why not? Is there something peculiar about citrus fruit that makes wine (or some other alcoholic beverage) making more difficult? Grapes are pretty acidic so that doesn’t sound like that should be an issue. Is there a liquer made from oranges, and not just orange flavored? Any thoughts? Questions? Anyone like a mint? ---
**Author:** ![Initial\_Entry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e9a140/32.png) [@Initial\_Entry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Initial_Entry)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/2 "2000-05-15T14:59:26Z")
I’ll hasard a guess and say that A)there are easier things to make alcoholic drinks out of, B)oranges are pretty new to the fruit scene, and C)it would probably just taste nasty anyway. ---
**Author:** ![hawthorne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@hawthorne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hawthorne)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/3 "2000-05-15T15:40:00Z")
I’ve had Kiwi fruit wine (with gold dust, no less) and it was vile. Orange “wine” may well be similar. Oranges are of course used for some drinks, notably Cointreau. I understand some people like it. picmr ---
**Author:** ![LabRat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/898d66/32.png) [@LabRat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LabRat)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/4 "2000-05-15T15:48:30Z")
There is an orange liquer. If I’m remembering correctly, it’s called Chambord. (sp?) -LabRat ---
**Author:** ![SuaSponte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/67e7ee/32.png) [@SuaSponte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuaSponte)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/5 "2000-05-15T16:08:55Z")
You can make wine out of almost anything that rots. My grandpappy made (I kid you not) dandelion wine, and it was pretty good. Likely the reason there’s no orange wine is more fashion and custom, rather than taste. For example, hard cider completely disappeared from the scene until the microbrewery explosion of the past ten years, even though it was the most popular alcoholic drink in colonial times. ---
**Author:** ![SuaSponte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/67e7ee/32.png) [@SuaSponte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuaSponte)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/6 "2000-05-15T16:10:04Z")
You can make wine out of almost anything that rots. My grandpappy made (I kid you not) dandelion wine, and it was pretty good. Likely the reason there’s no orange wine is more fashion and custom, rather than taste. For example, hard cider completely disappeared from the scene until the microbrewery explosion of the past ten years, even though it was the most popular alcoholic drink in colonial times. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/7 "2000-05-15T16:43:20Z")
A co-worker makes some every year for an annual memorial day party, and I like it. I remember that it seemed to be quite high in alcohol, a couple of glasses and I was pretty well in the bag. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/8 "2000-05-15T17:16:09Z")
Now, SuaSponte, would we doubt you? There’s even a song about the stuff, the chorus of which goes > [@](#): > > Dandelion wine will make you remember > The first days of Spring in the middle of December I’m not sure who, if anyone, holds the copywrite on it, but I’ve heard it sung by the Clancey Brothers and Tommy Makem. As to the wine itself, many members of my family have made it (you use just the blossoms), and from what I understand, it’s better than most grape wines. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/9 "2000-05-15T17:43:02Z")
From [http://www.unm.edu/~leroym/Wines.html](http://www.unm.edu/~leroym/Wines.html) > [@](#): > > Take a 1 pint can of Orange Juice (make sure it has no added preservatives), add one kilo of Sugar plus a teaspoonful each of Pectic Enzyme and Yeast Nutrient. Make up to 5 litres with water and put into fermenting bottle with a sachet of General Purpose Wine Yeast. Ferment to dryness, allow to clear and rack in the usual manner. Stabilise with Campden Tablets and Potassium Sorbate, sweeten if required then bottle. Makes a good light Hock style wine which should be ready to drink in about 6 months. (Combinations of Orange Juice with other juices can make interesting variations of flavour.) That site has a number of unusual wine recipes. Orange, OK, but I think I’ll pass on the tomato wine. Anything that has sugar or starch in it can potentially ferment. Wine yeasts will want a decent acid balance, too, but just look at the variety of stuff which cultures around the world have made alcoholic beverages out of … ---
**Author:** ![stolichnaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@stolichnaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolichnaya)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/10 "2000-05-15T18:22:19Z")
**LabRat** , Chambord is raspberry-flavored liqueur. I believe it’s brandy-based. Grand Marinier is maybe what you’re thinking of, but that’s orange _flavored_, not made with oranges. ---
**Author:** ![Show\_Biz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/77aa72/32.png) [@Show\_Biz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Show_Biz)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/11 "2000-05-15T18:31:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\*There is an orange liquer. If I’m remembering correctly, it’s called Chambord. (sp?) > > -LabRat\*\* The main brands are Gran Marnier (sweet, orange) and Cointreau (tart, clear), and Orange Curaçao (tart, orange). Both start as “wine”, liquor base, but aren’t really drinkable until the sugar is added after distilling. Here’s a description of the precess: \*\* [http://www.acom.fr/cointreau/](http://www.acom.fr/cointreau/) \*\* ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/12 "2000-05-15T21:34:45Z")
The inmates at the prison where my husband works used to hide rubber bags of orange juice, wad bread into balls and toss it in and let the thing ferment. He said they used to confinscate it easily because the stench travelled awesomely. He said it was the most god-awful, noxious odor he had ever encounterd. He couldn’t believe they actually drank the stuff. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/13 "2000-05-15T22:46:10Z")
A survey of winenologists said none of them would drink green wine. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2000, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/14 "2000-05-15T23:11:41Z")
Some of you might remember the series of humorous short stories written by an english veterinarian under the _nom de plume_ **James Herriott** : _All Creatures Great and Small_, _All Things Bright and Beautiful_, etc… In his second book (_All Things Bright and Beautiful_) he wrote about a visit to local farmer “Mr. Crump”, where he (the veterinarian) gets drunk on a variety of homemade wines: rhubarb, elderflower, blackberry, parsnip, dandelion, cowslip, parsley, clover, gooseberry, beetroot, crab apple, turnip (!). I don’t know how accurate James Herriott’s stories are. ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2000, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/15 "2000-05-16T00:46:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\* > …where he (the veterinarian) gets drunk on a variety of homemade wines: rhubarb, elderflower, blackberry, parsnip, dandelion, cowslip, parsley, clover, gooseberry, beetroot, crab apple, turnip (!). > \*\* I’m pretty much with SuaSponte. You can make wine out of pretty much any fruit, vegetable or plant material. Dandelion wine can be quite pleasant, but you do have to gather an awful lot of dandelions to make it. However, one word of warning with regards to the the _almost_ in “almost anything that rots”… as conveyed from a letter in a DIY Winemakers magazine to which an acquaintance of mine subscribed: “Never, ever, try to make wine out of chicken”. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Jo3sh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a587f6/32.png) [@Jo3sh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jo3sh)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2000, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/16 "2000-05-16T01:18:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\* > “Never, ever, try to make wine out of chicken”. :eek: > \*\* Why not? I’ve read a recipe in several of my home brewing books about “Cock Ale,” a beer made from, in part, a rooster. Here’s a link to a recipe for same on Cat’s Meow, an online database of beer recipes: [http://hbd.org/brewery/cm3/recs/13\_23.html](http://hbd.org/brewery/cm3/recs/13_23.html) As mentioned here: ( [http://www.greatlakes.brewingnews.com/9712/twilight.html](http://www.greatlakes.brewingnews.com/9712/twilight.html) ) the Boston Beer Company, brewers of Samuel Adams Boston Lager, even made a batch. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2000, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/17 "2000-05-16T01:31:14Z")
Cock Ale was mentioned in this recent mailbag column: [What’s the origin of “cocktail”? (17-Apr-2000)](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mcocktail.html) ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2000, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/18 "2000-05-17T03:14:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\* > Jo3sh: Why not? … the Boston Beer Company, brewers of Samuel Adams Boston Lager, even made a batch. > \*\* OK, good call. 🙂 I’m happy to admit to having never tried making chicken wine myself, and was simply repeating something I’d read. So, you’re right. Why not? The biggest difference that I can see is that in the Beer recipes the chicken is being used for flavoring and not the bulk of the drink. To quote from the “Beers of The Twilight Zone” you linked: > [@](#): > > Brewer Dave Grinnell obtained two small male birds, plucked, gutted and boiled them, then gave them a massage with 11 herbs and spices. The oven stuffers were tied up in a cloth sack filled with dates and currants, then steeped in the brew–a brown ale–as it flowed through the hop percolator. So, the beer is still beer, made with barley or what-have-you and flavoured with hops… with the added bonus of KFC as the special flavouring agent. 🙂 Similarly, the recipe in Gaudere’s column requires 10 gallons of ale and a chicken. Now, this is just my WAG mind, but as Elderberry wine or Dandelion wine is made wholly from said berries or flowers, then Chicken wine would be made wholly (or at least predominantly) from the juice extracted from a chicken… cooked… I guess. :shudder: The juice itself would then be fermented (read _rot_). As an aside, a Swedish friend of mine told me about a local delicacy of the area she hails from, the spelling of which I will mangle as _Lutefisk_, which is fermented herring. She also said that it was possible to tell when the neighbours opened a jar of it. I strongly suspect that chicken wine might have a similar bouquet. When fruit ferments the sugars change to alchohol and carbon dioxide with the effect of yeast. Is the effect the same with meat? I don’t know… but I don’t think there’ll be much fructose or sucrose in chicken. Is there a chemist in the house? ---
**Author:** ![VaHermit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/ed655f/32.png) [@VaHermit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VaHermit)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2000, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/19 "2000-05-17T04:39:57Z")
There is an orange liquor called “Rock’n Rye” IIRC. It might be “Rock and Rye”. Anyway, I’m not sure if it is just orange flavored or if it actually uses oranges as a main ingrediant. It is only about 60 proof but has a nice flavor and years ago it actually had a few slices of orange floating in it though I think they gave those up a while back. As far as Dandelion wine, maybe my discriminating palate has been spoiled by the more high class commercial dinner wines like “Mad Dog” and “Wild Irish Rose”, but from what I remember of my childhood, that stuff sucked…didn’t stop me from drinking it, but yechhhh. ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2000, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560/20 "2000-05-17T06:23:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*\*There is an orange liquer. If I’m remembering correctly, it’s called Chambord. (sp?) > > > > -LabRat\*\* > > The main brands are Gran Marnier (sweet, orange) and Cointreau (tart, clear), and Orange Curaçao (tart, orange). > > Both start as “wine”, liquor base, but aren’t really drinkable until the sugar is added after distilling. > \*\* So what’s Triple Sec made out of? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-orange-wine/19560.md?page=2)