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 Vinegar
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Real
VINEGAR adds real flavor
In case you hadn’t noticed, distinctive vinegars are
making a big splash these days! Today’s heady selection of
vinegar offers a range of styles and flavors that will
compliment any cuisine or cooking style. This ancient
condiment has become the new playground for chefs and
cooks who are looking to add flavor and counterpoint to
dishes without adding sweetness or heat. It can even
substitute for salt.
Recently we have embraced the glory of balsamic vinegar
and not so long ago in the late 1980’s raspberry vinegar
had its ascendancy. French tarragon vinegar reigned
supreme during Julia’s heyday on The French Chef
series in the 1960’s.
Today, we pare Agrodolce Sauvignon Blanc wine vinegar with
fruity olive oil and add aromatic sherry vinegar to a
garden fresh chilled gazpacho as the Spanish do. The time
has come for vinegar to become another layer of flavor and
the latest ingredient to be added to our new American
globally influenced ‘kitchen flavor palette’.
Superb, traditionally-made vinegar is the result of a
delicate and sensitive process. In the hands of a skilled
artisan using sound, ripe fruit and allowing the vinegar
to age slowly in wooden barrels, good vinegar results. But
like many food products, short cuts, speedy production and
damaged fruit compromises flavor. Bad vinegar, like bad
olive oil, is a poor investment and an insult to fine,
traditional, carefully made products.
Despite what many think, vinegar is not spoiled wine. Yes,
great wine vinegar is made from grapes but the process
used to make wine is different than the process used to
make vinegar. The winemaking process converts fruit sugar
into alcohol; vinegar-making converts fruit sugar into a
dilute 10-13 % alcohol then employs a bacterial
fermentation to convert the alcohol into acetic acid, or
vinegar. This same process yields stunning results when
making vinegar from the mash of other fruits such as
apples, pears, cherries or figs.
In addition to volumes of flavor, vinegar adds a tart,
sharp, clean, distinct snap to vinaigrettes,
marinades, sauces, chutneys and pickles. Vinegars should
be a good marriage of flavor and acidity. Great
vinegars are, for the most part, very reasonably priced,
often costing less than a good bottle of wine. This humble
kitchen essential will serve you well for months if not
years, and be well worth the cost.
Wine….sugar to alcohol
Wine Vinegar…..alcohol to acid
Balsamic Vinegar….sugar to acid
Balsamic Vinegar
 In
Italy, mature balsamic vinegar is used both as a seasoning
(condiment), and as vinegar. In addition to pairing
various balsamic vinegars with a great olive oil to
drizzle over salad greens, juicy tomatoes, or fresh
mozzarella cheese, try anointing a succulent steak, pork
tenderloin, or lamb kabob with a few drops of `balsamic
vinegar while hot off the grill. Balsamic is also
excellent sprinkled on grilled asparagus, fresh garden
peas, snappy green beans, or a rough-cut chunk of fragrant Parmigiano-Reggiano. For a real Italian treat, try a few
drops of balsamic vinegar on very ripe sweet fruit, such
as fresh summer strawberries or peaches. Bellissimo !
Balsamic
vinegar is aged in a series of five different wooden
barrels, each of which adds flavor and complexity to the
vinegar. Woods include chestnut (rich in tannin and
helps create rich dark color), cherry (sweetness),
mulberry (to lend a hint of vanilla to the flavor),
juniper (provides a resinous aroma), and oak
(to seal the different flavors).
Balsamic
vinegar is produced at 4 levels of quality.
The top
grade, Tradizionale, is the original, most expensive and
highly-revered balsamic. You will pay handsomely for a
noble bottle of this elixir that has been crafted in the
traditional way by an artisan producer. This balsamic is
superbly lush and intense, syrupy with complex flavors and
heady aromas.
The next
level is known as Artigianale. These balsamics are smooth,
full-bodied, and polished, and have a tangy, fruity
finish.
The third
level is Condimenti. These balsamics are well-rounded and
spirited, brisk, yet vibrant - the balsamics of everyday
use in Italy.
Lastly is the
Industriale, the low-level cheap stuff that is best
avoided. As with many things, you get what you pay for
when purchasing balsamic vinegar - you will never find
better-quality balsamic at discount prices. There is just
not enough of it.
Both
Artigianale and Condimenti balsamics are a way for
Tradizionale producers to bring to market a well-crafted
product that possesses both good style and integrity of
flavor, yet is more easily affordable.
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