verjuice

[ vur-joos ]

noun

1. an acid liquor made from the sour juice of crab apples, unripe grapes, etc., formerly much used for culinary and other purposes.
2. sourness, as of temper or expression.

adjective

1. of or relating to verjuice.
2. sour in temper, expression, etc.

verjuice

/ ˈvɜːˌdʒuːs /

noun

1. 1. the acid juice of unripe grapes, apples, or crab apples, formerly much used in making sauces, etc
   2. ( as modifier )

      verjuice sauce

2. rare.
   1. sourness or sharpness of temper, looks, etc
   2. ( as modifier )

      a verjuice old wife

verb

1. rare.
   tr to make sour; embitter

Word History and Origins

Origin of verjuice¹

1275–1325; Middle English verjuis < Middle French vertjus, equivalent to vert green (< Latin viridis ) + jus juice

Word History and Origins

Origin of verjuice¹

C14: from Old French vert jus green (unripe) juice, from Old French vert green (from Latin viridis ) + jus juice (from Latin jūs )

Example Sentences

Although it has been around since the medieval era, verjus, sometimes called verjuice, still isn’t a household word.

From Washington Post

Verjus, or verjuice, is vinegar made from unripe grape juice, but its production involves no fermentation, so it fits the bill perfectly.

From The Guardian

Ideally, one would have an infinitely useful grapevine, seasonally offering not only leaves, for pickling and a fairly desperate salad, but also tiny sour fruit, with which to make verjuice, and ripe grapes, for jam production, wine, and simple scoffing.

From The New Yorker

If you look away from the bar, Native leans almost towards fine dining, with bottles of Chablis on the tables, oysters with pastis-scented mignonette and crisp-skinned loup de mer with verjuice and batons of salsify.

From Los Angeles Times

I have used the hard-to-find verjuice instead of lemon, and once included a little honey in the recipe.

From The Guardian