Ribes

These soft summer fruits come from a bushy plant that can be found in the wild. The translucent black, red or white berries are collected in small bunches. The blackcurrant is used by the drinks industry to make an alcoholic syrup that can be diluted with wine or spumante to make kir or for making jams. In jam-making, because of their high pectin content, ribes are often added to low-pectin fruit like strawberries, cherries and peaches. They are used in pâtisserie, in fruit tarts, and for decorating sweets. Along with other berry fruit, they are used to make summery fruit salads called macedonia sottobosco or frutti di bosco.