🍷 Burčiak

Burčiak is a young fermenting wine made in Slovakia and Czechia. It is drunk in autumn, during the harvest. It is a cloudy drink that has not yet become finished wine. Burčiak is made from fresh must in which fermentation is under way but not finished. It contains some alcohol, a lot of sugar and carbon dioxide, so it foams slightly. It is cloudy because yeast floats in it. The taste is sweet and fresh, like grape juice with a light sparkle. In Germany and Austria a similar drink is called Federweisser. In every country it is a seasonal drink: it is sold at markets and harvest festivals, usually in September and October. Burčiak cannot be stored for long: fermentation continues, and the bottle is not sealed tight. In Slovak and Czech winemaking, burčiak is part of the harvest culture. Although it tastes sweet, it does contain alcohol, and the level can rise quickly as fermentation goes on.