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Blueberry farmers make wine from misshapen fruit
Lutton Farms in Northamptonshire has begun making blueberry wine using misshapen fruit rejected by supermarkets in a bid to reduce waste.
Owners of Lutton Farms Stephen and James Long decided to use misshapen and soft blueberries shunned by supermarkets to create their Blue Aurora range of wines, which are producing using no grapes.
The farm produces 500 tonnes of blueberries each year from a 45 hectare plot, but up to a fifth of the annual production is wasted due to the fruit being the wrong size, too soft, or too misshapen for supermarkets to accept.
Fruit discarded by supermarkets is vinified and used to create three blueberry wines: Dusk, Midnight and Ice wine.
Dusk is described as a medium-dry wine, while Midnight is an “intense, oaky and beautifully rich” full-bodied wine, according to the Blue Aurora website. Blueberries used to create the third offering are frozen before being pressed and fermented.
The wines, which are gluten-free and vegan-friendly, were developed in order to reduce wasted fruit.
Stephen Long told the Peterborough Telegraph, where this story was first reported: “With every harvest, up to 20 per cent of the crop is wasted – fruit which is either too small or too soft for supermarkets, although it is still great quality, great-tasting fruit.”
According to Long, this is where “the idea to diversify and take the bold leap into wine production came from”.
Lutton Farms is now the only producer of blueberry wines in England.
Long told the Peterborough Telegraph: “Throughout the whole process, from field to bottle, we wanted to maintain the integrity of the beautiful blueberries we grow here at Lutton Farm.
“And that’s why the wine is not mixed with any grape juice. It is, purely and simply, 100% English blueberries.”
In other news, unprecedented and detailed new research offers insight for potential investors into exactly where to buy English vineyards and why, with temperatures and harvest conditions forecast up until 2040.
By 2040, temperatures are predicted to climb by a further 1.4°C, which the researchers say is good news for diversifying English wine.
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