Arabic & Levantine Pantry Guide
Grape Molasses (Dibs al-Inab / Pekmez): Traditional Grape Syrup for Tahini and Jallab
Grape molasses (known in Arabic as dibs al-inab and in Turkish as üzüm pekmezi) is a rich, dark-amber syrup made by slowly reducing sweet pressed grape juice. A prized autumn pantry staple across the Levant and Anatolia, it is swirled with tahini and walnuts for winter breakfasts and forms the base of iced jallab.
An Autumn Vineyard Tradition (Mouneh)
In the vineyard hills of Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, Syria, Palestine and Turkey, simmering grape molasses is a time-honoured late-summer harvest ritual. Sun-sweetened grapes are crushed and the fresh must is clarified – traditionally using a pinch of natural white chalky earth that settles impurities and tempers the acidity – before being boiled down for hours until it thickens into a glossy, ruby-brown nectar sweetened only by the fruit's own sugars.
Swirled with Tahini and Walnuts on Winter Mornings
Throughout the cooler months, a small dish of grape molasses marbled with creamy sesame tahini (dibs wa tahini, or tahin-pekmez) is a beloved breakfast and Ramadan suhoor staple. The bright, raisin-like sweetness of the grape syrup cuts through the rich, nutty roast of the sesame paste; topped with crushed walnuts or toasted sesame seeds, it is scooped up with warm pita bread or paired with clotted cream (qishta).
In Iced Jallab and Traditional Mountain Sweets
Grape molasses is also the key fruit base behind jallab, the smoky, rose-water-scented Levantine cooler served over crushed ice with pine nuts and golden raisins. In the high mountain villages of Lebanon and Syria, families historically celebrated winter snowfalls by scooping clean white snow into bowls and drizzling it with thick grape molasses to make 'thalj bi dibs' – the region's oldest snow cone.