Mountain Apple Juice Gravensteiner

Kohl Gourmet Mountain Apple Juice Gravensteiner smells of childhood

The Kohl Gourmet Mountain Apple Juice Gravensteiner is a single-varietal, naturally cloudy direct juice made from one of Europe's oldest summer apples, hand-picked on the Ritten in South Tyrol. A summer apple that must go straight from the tree to the press – which is why its juice tastes the way apples used to taste.

Mountain Apple Juice Gravensteiner brings one of Europe's oldest and most popular apple varieties to the glass: documented since 1669, pressed as a single variety by Thomas Kohl, high above Bozen on the Ritten. The Gravensteiner smells of childhood, simply the way an apple should smell – and you will find exactly this scent in every sip.

The Mountain Apple Juice Gravensteiner glows a light straw-yellow in the glass. On the nose, it is lively, floral, and spicy, with a fine citrus note reminiscent of grapefruit. On the palate, it is bold, with a well-balanced fruit-acid interplay and a refreshing finish – noticeably less sweet than its sibling Pinova. If you prefer your apple juice dry, this is the right choice for you.

With sushi, seafood, and refined cream soups

The Mountain Apple Juice Gravensteiner pairs well with raw fish such as sushi and sashimi, seafood, and crustaceans – and it really comes into its own alongside a rich cream soup.

It pairs well with light dishes that are spicy, salty, or acidic – it just doesn't get along well with heat or pronounced sweetness. Served well-chilled at a sushi evening, its lively acidity stands up to soy sauce and cleanses the palate between pieces. It is also delicious before grilled fish as a light starter on a warm evening.

A chance seedling has been conquering the world since 1669

The Gravensteiner owes its existence to chance: a seedling, documented since 1669, that traveled from the palace gardens in Gravenstein, Denmark, across the whole world, from Norway to California.

Its exact origin has not been passed down, and one of the stories leads to Italy – precisely where it grows today on the Ritten. In 2005, Denmark named the Gravensteiner its national fruit, and it also found a second home in the "Altes Land" region outside Hamburg as a classic among summer apples.

The summer apple ripens from the end of August to mid-September; its large, juicy fruits do not store well – a disadvantage for large-scale cultivation. Therefore, what ends up in the bottle is freshly harvested.

From the tree to the press before summer ends

Because the Gravensteiner does not like to be stored, it is processed at Kohl the very morning after harvest – because the fresher the fruit travels from the tree to the press, the more lively the zest remains in the glass. Nothing ends up in the bottle but the apple itself: 100 percent direct juice from a single variety.

"Twenty years ago, I felt like I wanted to try something new," Thomas Kohl often says about the beginnings at the Troidner Hof, which is located at an altitude of over 900 meters high above Bozen – the family's highest orchards reach up to 1,000 meters. This evolved into a dedicated craft: the apples are hand-picked in several passes, pressed as single varieties, flash-pasteurized, and bottled as naturally cloudy juice. This preserves exactly what makes the summer apple so rare.

The citrus notes open up in a long-stemmed glass

Well-chilled at 8 to 10 degrees and served in a long-stemmed glass, its floral and citrus notes open up. Its neighbor Jonagold is slightly sweeter and softer, and the entire single-varietal family is waiting in the Kohl Gourmet Collection.