Griotte Cherries

The fruit

Prunus cerasus is an Old World species of Prunus in the subgenus Cerasus. It has two main groups of cultivars : the dark-red Morello cherry and the lighter-red Amarelle cherry. The tree is smaller than the sweet cherry, growing to a height of 4-10 m. Prunus cerasus is thought to have originated as a natural hybrid between Prunus avium and Prunus fruticosa in the Iranian Plateau or Eastern Europe. The Morello cherry ripens in mid- to late summer. The fruit averages 84.9% water, and its dry weight includes 39.7% carbohydrates and 1.0% lipids.

Cultivars

Notable sour cherry cultivars include Morello, Montmorency, Amarena, Marasca and Griotte de Kleparow.

Production

In 2022, world production of sour cherries was 1.6 million tonnes, led by Russia with 19% of the total.

Griottines and kirsch

Griottines are cherries macerated in eau de vie or kirsch. They can be eaten alone, or used in a number of local dishes both savoury and sweet. Fougerolles, a former commune in the Haute-Saône department of eastern France, is associated with both kirsch and griottines.

The cherry stones are included in the fermentation process of kirschwasser, not removed beforehand. Unlike cherry liqueurs and cherry brandies, kirschwasser is not sweet. Kirsch contains small quantities of hydrogen cyanide, partly as such and partly combined as benzaldehyde-cyanohydrin, to which its distinctive flavour is largely due.

Benzaldehyde in cherry seeds

Cherry seed contains significant amounts of amygdalin. Under enzyme catalysis this glycoside breaks up into benzaldehyde, hydrogen cyanide and two equivalents of glucose. Benzaldehyde (C₇H₆O) is an organic compound consisting of a benzene ring with a formyl substituent.

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