CATEGORY

Lemon Juice

2009 CHEFSBEST® AWARD FOR BEST TASTE WINNER

Concord Foods

What Makes Great Lemon Juice?

Although only a bold few would ever drink it straight with no chaser, lemon juice is a crucial additive to so many food and drink recipes. Keep a bottle on your refrigerator shelf to tart up salsa verde picante and all kinds of pasta salads — and of course, to make your own lemonade.

Great lemon juice begins with a light yellow color; some cloudiness is also appropriate. Floral and fruity notes will define both the aroma and flavor of the best lemon juice — in fact, the more of these you detect, the better.

Unsurprisingly, pronounced sourness will by far be the predominant basic taste of great lemon juice. Sweetness will also reveal itself at a moderate level, while bitterness will remain very low.

When sampled in homemade lemonade, top-quality lemon juice will feature a strong aftertaste and a moderate level of astringency. When sampled in a freshly made lemon curd, the moderate lemon flavor of the best lemon juice should persist through the flavors of eggs and butter.

We know what makes a great lemon juice, but what makes a bad one?

Shocking as it may seem, the aroma of the worst lemon juices sampled by our panel of expert chefs reminded them of lemon-scented cleaning products. Once tasted, these inferior lemon juices fared little better, drawing comparisons to old, dull, or even candied lemons.

Why is Concord the best lemon juice?

Concord's lemon juice produced the most floral notes of any lemon juice tasted by our chefs; it also tasted the freshest. It worked best in both applications (lemonade and lemon curd), and had little to no burn in its aftertaste.

This judging was for lemon juice, not including lemonade or other lemon-based beverages.

Other Leading Brands:

Minute Maid, Real Lemon, Sicilia