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This wasn't very scientifically done, but some of you might find it interesting.
I made some rhubarb wine a few years ago and didn't care for it because of it's unpleasant acidity. Since then I read Luc's blog post about reducing acid in rhubarb (http://wijnmaker.blogspot.com/2009/0...arbwine-1.html). I thought that was worth a try, so I froze some rhubarb pieces then thawed and pressed out the juice. That juice had a starting pH of 3.19. I split the batch into several small plastic bottles and refroze it. Unlike Luc's lovely red juice, mine was kind of an ugly green. After I cut the first bottle off there was an area of darker color at the bottom, although this was much less distinct than Luc's. I cut this off and let it melt. It melted to about 3 ounces of juice with a pH of 3.03. Seems to confirm Luc's theory.
Thinking about my experience making supersweet frozen cider concentrates, where the first part that melts is the sweetest and most intensely flavored, I wondered if something similar would happen with the rhubarb. So I let it melt for a while. The pH of the next 3 or 4 ounces was 3.16, then 4 more ounces measured 3.16 and the next at 3.30... finally higher than the original pH.
Although I didn't repeat this test it does seem that the first 20% or so by volume that melts is the most acidic part of the juice. Throwing this out would reduce the acidity of the batch significantly. I expect there is some cost to pay in reduced flavor as well.
If you try this, be really careful when cutting the cold slippery bottles off the frozen juice. I managed to cut myself and then get some high acid juice in the cut... ouch.
I made some rhubarb wine a few years ago and didn't care for it because of it's unpleasant acidity. Since then I read Luc's blog post about reducing acid in rhubarb (http://wijnmaker.blogspot.com/2009/0...arbwine-1.html). I thought that was worth a try, so I froze some rhubarb pieces then thawed and pressed out the juice. That juice had a starting pH of 3.19. I split the batch into several small plastic bottles and refroze it. Unlike Luc's lovely red juice, mine was kind of an ugly green. After I cut the first bottle off there was an area of darker color at the bottom, although this was much less distinct than Luc's. I cut this off and let it melt. It melted to about 3 ounces of juice with a pH of 3.03. Seems to confirm Luc's theory.
Thinking about my experience making supersweet frozen cider concentrates, where the first part that melts is the sweetest and most intensely flavored, I wondered if something similar would happen with the rhubarb. So I let it melt for a while. The pH of the next 3 or 4 ounces was 3.16, then 4 more ounces measured 3.16 and the next at 3.30... finally higher than the original pH.
Although I didn't repeat this test it does seem that the first 20% or so by volume that melts is the most acidic part of the juice. Throwing this out would reduce the acidity of the batch significantly. I expect there is some cost to pay in reduced flavor as well.
If you try this, be really careful when cutting the cold slippery bottles off the frozen juice. I managed to cut myself and then get some high acid juice in the cut... ouch.
