Juices & Nectars

Direct Juices & Nectars — gently pressed, without concentrate

Real juices are artisanal products. They are made when the fruit is pressed immediately after harvesting and the juice is bottled directly, without being concentrated first. What ends up in your glass tastes of the fruit — not of water that was later added back in. At genussland.de, you'll find these juices and nectars in the full range that German, Italian, and French manufacturers offer today.

What is the difference between direct juice and juice from concentrate?

With a direct juice, the fruit is pressed and the juice is bottled directly — at most gently pasteurized to ensure shelf life. With a juice from concentrate, water is extracted from the juice, the concentrate is transported or stored, and later diluted again by adding water. The taste difference is clearly noticeable — a mountain apple direct juice has a depth and complexity that a concentrate juice cannot achieve. Nectar is a juice to which some water and usually sugar have been added — typical for fruits like apricot, peach, or quince, whose pulp would be too thick or too sour for pure juice.

Which manufacturers can you find at genussland?

Kohl Bergapfelsaft from South Tyrol presses juices from mountain apples from the high plateau on the Ritten near Bolzano — varieties like Pinova, Royal Gala, Topaz, or Roter Boskop grow at altitudes of 600 to 900 meters and develop particularly strong acidic structures due to the cool nights. Kohl offers single-varietal apple juices, blends with pear, aronia, or elderflower, as well as cloudy direct juices without added water or sugar.

Alain Milliat from the Rhône Valley in France has been considered a benchmark for premium fruit juices since the 1990s. The manufacturer works with single-varietal grapes (Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot Rosé), berries (strawberry, raspberry, blueberry), and stone fruits (peach, apricot, mirabelle). The nectar line covers fruits whose pulp would be too concentrated for pure juice — mirabelle nectar, apricot nectar, peach nectar.

van Nahmen from Hamminkeln in the Lower Rhine region works with traditional orchards from the region and offers direct juices from old varieties — Stromberger plum, Bittenfelder apple, Williams-Christ pear. The juices are often single-varietal and unsweetened.

Cantina Kurtatsch from South Tyrol offers a Sauvignon Blanc grape juice — alcohol-free, single-varietal, and with a wine-like character. Weingut Rings adds an organic grape juice from the Palatinate, and Glow Glow offers cloudy direct grape juices.

What to use these juices for

• As an alcohol-free accompaniment to a meal — single-varietal grape juice to match the respective dish
• As an aperitif before dinner, pure or with a little soda water
• As a base for alcohol-free cocktails and spritzers
• As a breakfast accompaniment — honest direct juice tastes different from concentrate juice
• As a gift for guests who don't drink wine — a bottle of single-varietal peach nectar is like a small still life

Frequently asked questions about direct juices and nectars

What is the difference between direct juice and 100% juice?
Both contain only juice, without added water or sugar. The difference lies in the process: 100% juice is a term also permissible for juice from concentrate, provided that the added water only replaces the amount previously removed. Direct juice, however, completely bypasses the concentrating step — the juice is bottled directly after pressing. The taste difference is clearly discernible.

Are direct juices cloudy?
Many, but not all. The cloudiness is caused by fine fruit fibers floating in the juice — they show that the juice has not been filtered. Cloudy juices generally contain more aroma and flavor compounds than filtered ones. For direct grape juices, clarity is often desired to allow the wine-like character to shine through.

How long does an opened direct juice last?
An opened bottle of direct juice will last about five to seven days in the refrigerator. Pasteurized juices last a little longer, while cloudy juices without further treatment last a little less. The juice tastes best on the day it's opened and the day after.

Why is direct juice more expensive than juice from concentrate?
Direct juice requires more fruit per bottle because there is no concentrating step involved, and more effort in storage and logistics (no space-saving concentrate). For manufacturers like Kohl, Alain Milliat, or van Nahmen, this also includes varietal care, single-varietal pressing, and organic or traditional orchard standards. You can taste the difference in the glass.

Direct juice, nectar, and single-varietal grape juice — the alcohol-free accompaniment that tastes of fruit.