Schusters Shrub – Vinegar-based Fruit Syrup from the Steigerwald
Schusters Shrub is a small manufactory in the Franconian Steigerwald, where Hanna and Gabi Schuster produce fruity syrups based on apple cider vinegar. Using just 3 ingredients, they create shrubs for dressings, lemonades, and drinks that are natural in flavor, have a shelf life of about 3 years, and contain absolutely no artificial additives.
Schusters Shrub is a vinegar-based fruit syrup that has been produced since 2012 in a workshop in Untersteinbach in the Steigerwald. Fruit, sugar, and apple cider vinegar—that is all it takes to turn ripe fruit into a versatile syrup for salad dressings, homemade lemonades, and cocktails. At nurGutes, we have selected the sweet, fruity varieties for you, from raspberry to elderflower.
2012, an idea from Pennsylvania
It all began in 2012, when Hanna Schuster first tasted a shrub during a semester abroad in Pennsylvania.
Hanna is a trained food technologist, and the intense, yet completely natural taste of the syrup captivated her. "So much flavor, and from just 3 ingredients," Hanna emphasizes.
Back in Germany, she tinkered with her own recipes until her enthusiasm turned into a small manufactory, where she can fully live out her passion for shrubs. She particularly loves showing people who are not yet familiar with shrubs the wide, wonderful world of this syrup.
As a food technologist, Hanna had a knack for the interplay between acidity and fruit from the very beginning. The first attempts in the home kitchen soon became established recipes, and what started as a hobby now fills bottle after bottle.
Today, the whole family is on board. Gabi Schuster invented the syrup for mulled wine by simply boiling down the many spices in water. "A splash of that in the wine, and I had a good mulled wine in no time at all," explains Gabi.
Because of this, it smells like Christmas at the Schusters' as early as the summer, and this syrup has long been bottled as well. Even the children diligently taste and test every new variety, and they agree on their favorite: raspberry is number one.
Fruit syrups for dressings, lemonades, and drinks
The focus is on the fruity shrubs, syrups that season a salad dressing in 2 minutes and turn every glass of sparkling water into a lemonade.
The varieties read like a stroll through the garden and orchard: raspberry, blackcurrant, elderflower, rosemary-lemon, red grape. A spoonful over a salad, plus a good olive oil—a fine salad dressing needs nothing more.
In sparkling water, the same syrup becomes a fruity homemade lemonade; with sparkling wine or Prosecco and a few mint leaves, it becomes a zesty aperitif. In summer, the raspberry finds its way into the glass, in autumn the quince, and for the holidays, the red grape is a perfect fit.
This way, every variety finds its place—on the plate, in the glass, in dessert. Pour the elderflower over an aperitif or drizzle it over a sorbet; the blackcurrant goes just as well with game and cheese as it does over vanilla ice cream.
Each fruit brings its own character, sometimes floral, sometimes tart, sometimes sun-sweet, so that a simple syrup becomes an entire small world of aromas. "A good shrub can do almost anything," says Hanna. You can find other fruity syrups for lemonades and cocktails right next door.
Exactly how many varieties there are changes with the seasons, as new creations are added regularly. We have selected the sweet, fruity shrubs for you; we intentionally leave aside the savory ones with onions and other vegetables.
Three ingredients, four weeks of patience
Behind every bottle lies an old method: The fruits are steeped in apple cider vinegar and left to infuse for 4 to 6 weeks.
Depending on the fruit, Hanna proceeds differently. Citrus fruits are sliced into the barrel, hard quinces are chopped into small pieces, and the softer berries are added as whole fruit because the vinegar penetrates well even without crushing them.
The goal is to increase the surface area of the fruits so that as many of their aromas as possible are extracted by the vinegar. After maceration, the fruits are pressed so that even the last aromatic residue passes into the fruit vinegar; the spent fruit is then sent to the compost.
In the third step, the fruit vinegar is seasoned with sugar until the ratio of acid to sweetness is just right. This is how fruit has been preserved for over 200 years.
Bottled hot, every shrub then lasts for about 3 years, without any artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives. Natural, shelf-stable, versatile—a good syrup needs no higher standard. And you can taste that care in every spoonful.
Finally, the label is applied to the bottle by hand, and then the shrub can begin its journey, into your glass, your salad, or your dessert. As simple as the ingredient list is, there is just as much manual labor in every single bottle.
An open-view manufactory in the Steigerwald
Work takes place in an open-view manufactory in Untersteinbach, in the middle of the Steigerwald, where guests are welcome to look over the Schusters' shoulders during a gourmet tour.
You can watch as the syrups are bottled, taste new creations, and take a few bottles of your favorite shrub home with you. It is a family business in the best sense, with short distances, open doors, and plenty of manual work.
Anyone who has visited quickly understands why every bottle here has its own little story. The surrounding Steigerwald provides a beautiful backdrop, and many local fruits end up in the barrel later on.
At trade fairs and weekly markets, the Schusters are often behind the stand themselves and let people sample their wares, because nothing is as convincing as the first spoonful. This closeness to the people who enjoy their syrups is particularly important to Hanna and Gabi.
Even the New York Times has dedicated an article to the shrubs, praising their character and variety—after all, almost an infinite number of variations can be made from 3 simple ingredients. At nurGutes, your source for honest specialties since 2002, we were therefore happy to add the manufactory to our range.
Raspberry in lemonade
If you are discovering Schusters Shrub for the first time, start with the raspberry, the family's declared number one.
1 to 2 tablespoons in ice-cold sparkling water, a few mint leaves, and the lemonade tastes like summer. We like to drink the elderflower with Prosecco as a zesty aperitif, the rosemary-lemon fits wonderfully into a salad dressing with good oil, and the blackcurrant belongs, in our opinion, over any vanilla ice cream.
Juicy, fruity, versatile—a shrub quickly makes a career for itself in the kitchen. It is also a fine companion when cooking: a splash in a sauce, a spoonful in a marinade, and the dish gets a fruity-fresh note. As a small gift, a bottle is always a pleasure, and for the children, the raspberry lemonade becomes a festive drink without any alcohol at all.
Those looking for fruity companions without alcohol will also find what they are looking for in the juices and nectars from Alain Milliat. Just taste your way through the varieties of Schusters Shrub and be surprised at how much can come from 3 ingredients.
