As I walk past the vines, the sweet smell of Concord grapes alert me that it is time to harvest. When I bring my bounty home and get ready to prepare some grapey goodness, I ask my hubby which recipe he prefers; jelly, jam, puree for pie, juice… “Grape juice, grandma’s way”, he replies.
It is important for me to not only preserve our harvest, but preserve those memories he has of the farm. My husband is fond of anything done the way they did it on the farm. So, without delay and without an actual recipe from grandma, I begin.
Now, mind you, my husband does not cook or follow recipes. I’m going off of stories he recollects from childhood, and for a man who doesn’t cook he does remember the steps pretty good. The process is very simple and I’m going to experiment with the amounts of sugar, because I don’t have the actual recipe from Grandma Bossler. I made some of the jars with ½ Cup sugar and others with 1/3 Cup sugar. I will label them and we shall see at the time of the taste test.
Concord Grape Juice Recipe
- 1 Cup Concord Grapes (heaping)
- 1/3 – ½ Cup sugar
- Boiling water to fill to the rim of each jar
Soak and rinse concord grapes in cool water, then drain. I like to add some vinegar to the water and let them soak for at least 3 minutes before rinsing and draining. While they are soaking you can set up your canning assembly line and wash canning jars. After washing the jars in soap and water, I place them in the dishwasher on the sanitize cycle to sterilize.
Remove stems from each individual grape and place into a container for later… depending on how many grapes you have this could be a while. Fill each sterilized jar with 1 Cup of Concord grapes. Add sugar to each jar then fill to the rim with boiling water.
Remove lids and rings from hot water bath and place on jars for canning. Process jars for 15 minutes in a hot water bath. Because I didn’t have a recipe I used the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving for a reference on how long to process my jars. This is a great resource and canning companion!
Once the jars are processed and cooled, make sure they have sealed properly. Label and set aside for at least 4-6 weeks while the magic happens. When you’re ready to have your Concord Grape juice – Grandma’s Way, strain juice and enjoy the grapey goodness!
Drake Farm 
This is the way I’ve made grape juice. My grandkids love it. This year I got a steamer juicer from a friend and made concentrate. I’m curious to see the difference because I love “grandmas way”
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Thanks for the comment! It makes light work of a plentiful grape harvest and it is so easy!
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Thanks for sharing, this looks like a simple yet yummy way to make grape juice. Is this recipe for quart jars or Pint? Also what do you like better using 1/3 cup or half cup of sugar?
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This recipe is for the quart jars. My husband prefers the recipe with 1/2 Cup sugar and I like both. I think it is personal taste for most. The soil and grapes make a big difference too. Our grapes are older with rich soil, so they have more flavor than others I’ve had. I know they are ready to pick when I walk by and the sweet smell of grape shouts they are ready!
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Just finished canning 21 quarts! Now the hard part, to wait the 4 to 6 weeks before trying it out😔 I have enough grapes for another 21 quarts; however, there are no sealing lids to be found. Going to try and freeze the remainder of my grapes, and can at a later date. Do you think this will give me the same end result?
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Wow! That’s amazing! I haven’t tried the recipe from frozen grapes, but I know you can make a grape purée and freeze that for cooking juice at a later date or using for recipes like “Grape fluff pie”.
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24 hours later all jars sealed and ready to store. However, I am noticing that all my sugar is at the bottom of my jar, does not look like your picture above. I would have thought the sugar should have dissolved. Even when I lightly shake the jar the sugar does not move. Did I do something wrong during the processing?
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There are a lot of variables with canning; over ripe or under ripe fruit, temperature of water, too much sugar, etc. It sounds like the fruit pectin was high and could have encapsulated the sugar. I would recommend checking with https://www.freshpreserving.com/canning-101 and I believe you can email them with your questions directly.
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Follow-up! It has now been four days and most if not all the sugar has dissolved!! I am one happy camper! Thanks again for your inspiring post(s)!!
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Can I use frozen grapes?
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This “old timer” recipe is for fresh Concord grapes.
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I made 14 quarts of your grape juice. We waited 6 weeks and tried it last night. It was so good!! Thank you for sharing!
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You are welcome! I love keeping the old traditions alive, especially when they taste so good! 😉🍇
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Can I use honey instead of sugar? What about sugar substitutes?
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I have not tried honey or sugar substitutes with this recipe. I checked with family members, but everyone uses sugar.
Honey can be subbed in baked goods, but I haven’t tried for canning. Honey is sweeter, so usually using less is recommended when subbing. It can also make fruits darker and baked good will brown quicker. Honey can also change the flavor when subbing for sugar. The darker the honey the stronger the taste, but again I have never tried it with this recipe or the canning process.
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Can I use this grape juice later to make grape jelly?
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When I make grape jelly, I use the juice extracted from cooking down the grapes. It is thicker and we like a heavier consistency for our spreads.
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