Fresh Ingredients

Fresh Pineapple Juice

Fresh pineapple juice is sweet and full-bodied, with only about 0.8% acid, and it throws a foam when shaken hard. It is the long measure in the Singapore Sling, the Piña Colada and most tiki punches, and it gives the French Martini and the Hotel Nacional their head. Juice it the same day, or use a chilled not-from-concentrate carton where a recipe allows one.

Quick Facts

ABV0% ABV

Legal categoryNon-alcoholic

OriginSouth America (historically)

Flavour Strengthmedium bold

SeasonYear-round (best in summer)

Our keeping timeJuiced: the same day. Whole: three to five days once ripe.

Storage

We keep a whole pineapple at room temperature and refrigerate it once cut. Juice belongs covered in the fridge and used the same day; it separates on standing, which stirs back in, but a cidery smell means it has started to ferment.

Allergens

None of the 14 listed allergens.

The ingredient

About Fresh Pineapple Juice

Flavour Profile

Primary Flavours

Tropical fruitSweetFresh acidity

Tasting Notes

Juicy tropical sweetness with bright acidity and rich mouthfeel. Softer acid than citrus juices.

Pineapple brings sugar and body, and lime brings the sour

Pineapple juice carries about 0.8% acid, close to orange and far short of lime. It is sweeter than either and thicker, because it holds fine fibre and dissolved solids that lemon and lime juice lack. That body lets it make up half a drink without tasting watery: 120ml in the Singapore Sling, 50ml against 50ml of rum in the Piña Colada.

Most tiki drinks pair it with lime. The pineapple brings the fruit and the body, the lime the sourness, as in the Jungle Bird, the Hotel Nacional and the Rum Swizzle.

Fresh juice foams; heat-treated juice much less

A hard shake gives fresh pineapple juice a head of foam, which is how the French Martini gets its head with no egg white. The foam is generally put down to proteins and fine solids in the juice, and heat treatment weakens it: carton juice froths less, tinned juice least.

Fresh pineapple also carries bromelain, an enzyme that breaks down protein. Heat destroys it, which is why cooked or tinned pineapple has none of the effect.

Pineapple juice by how it reaches the glass

Heat-treated

Fresh-pressed: No
Chilled, not from concentrate: Usually pasteurised
Tinned or long-life: Yes

Foam when shaken

Fresh-pressed: Strong
Chilled, not from concentrate: Weaker
Tinned or long-life: Weak

Bromelain active

Fresh-pressed: Yes
Chilled, not from concentrate: Usually not
Tinned or long-life: No

Keeps

Fresh-pressed: The same day, by our rule
Chilled, not from concentrate: As the label says once opened
Tinned or long-life: As the label says once opened

In our recipes

Fresh-pressed: The default
Chilled, not from concentrate: Allowed in the Rum Runner, the Painkiller and the Bahama Mama
Tinned or long-life: Not recommended

	Fresh-pressed	Chilled, not from concentrate	Tinned or long-life
Heat-treated	No	Usually pasteurised	Yes
Foam when shaken	Strong	Weaker	Weak
Bromelain active	Yes	Usually not	No
Keeps	The same day, by our rule	As the label says once opened	As the label says once opened
In our recipes	The default	Allowed in the Rum Runner, the Painkiller and the Bahama Mama	Not recommended

A blender and a sieve do the job of a juicer

Cut off the skin and the core, blend the flesh, then strain it through a fine sieve or muslin, pressing rather than wringing. A medium pineapple gives roughly 400ml. Refrigerate the juice, covered, and get through it that day. It separates on standing, which a stir puts right; a fizzy or cidery smell means it has started to ferment.

Using it

Using Fresh Pineapple Juice

Usage

From 15ml in the French Martini to 120ml in the Singapore Sling and the Painkiller; 45 to 60ml in most tiki drinks. A hard shake of 10 to 12 seconds raises a foam; double strain anything served up so the fibre stays out.

Pro Tip

Blend and strain the pineapple early in the day and hold the jug in the fridge. The solids drift to the bottom over an hour or two, so give it a stir before every pour and each drink gets its share of body.

Top Tips

Choose a heavy pineapple that smells sweet at the base.
Cut out the core before blending; it is fibrous and gives pulp rather than juice.
Shake hard and double strain; the foam passes through and the fibre does not.
If a carton has to stand in, choose a chilled not-from-concentrate one, never a tin.

Possible Substitutions

A chilled not-from-concentrate carton: less foam and a flatter smell, acceptable where the recipe says so
Tinned or long-life juice: heat-treated and cooked in taste; a last resort

Production Method

Fresh pineapple is peeled and cored, then juiced using a blender and fine strain, or a juicer. Strain lightly to retain some body while removing fibrous solids. Store cold in a sealed container.

Go further

More to explore

Common Questions

Why does pineapple juice foam when shaken?

Fresh pineapple juice carries proteins and fine solids that hold air bubbles when shaken vigorously, a weaker version of what egg white does. That is how the French Martini and the Hotel Nacional get their head with no egg in them. Heat-treated juice from a carton or a tin foams less.

Is fresh pineapple juice better than carton?

In most of our drinks, yes: fresh tastes brighter and foams better. Where it is a long measure in a punch, as in the Rum Runner or the Bahama Mama, chilled juice that is not from concentrate does the job. Tinned or long-life juice tastes cooked and is a last resort.

How do you juice a pineapple without a juicer?

Peel it, cut out the core, blend the flesh and pass it through muslin, pressing gently so the juice stays clear. A medium pineapple gives roughly 400ml, enough for three Singapore Slings at 120ml each.

How long does fresh pineapple juice keep?

Keep it chilled and finish it the day it is made. Its sugar means it starts to ferment rather than simply fade, so a fizz or a cidery smell is the sign to pour it away. Separation on standing is normal; stir it back together before you measure.

What is bromelain in pineapple?

An enzyme that breaks down protein, found throughout the fresh plant and fruit. It is the reason fresh pineapple tenderises meat and tinned pineapple does not: heat denatures the enzyme. Pasteurised juice has therefore lost it, along with some of its smell.

How much acid is in pineapple juice?

About 0.8% citric acid, roughly an eighth of lime juice's 6%. That is why pineapple drinks almost always carry lime as well: the pineapple brings fruit, sugar and body, and the lime does the balancing. The Piña Colada is the exception, with only a few drops of lime added to taste.

What drinks use pineapple juice?

The Singapore Sling at 120ml, the Piña Colada at 50ml, and the Jungle Bird, the Mary Pickford and the Rum Swizzle at 45ml each. Smaller measures give foam and fruit: 15ml in the French Martini, 22.5ml in the Algonquin and the Pisco Punch.

Make something

Made with Fresh Pineapple Juice

Featured In These Cocktails

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Often Used With

Updated 18 October 2026

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