18 year aged balsamic
balsamico Vinegar
is a authentic heavy flavoured vinegar commonly used
in Italian cooking. It is frequently used as a salad
vinaigrette when combined with oil or as a marinade. It
is a traditional food product that was developed in Modena, Italy,
where it has been Created since the Middle Ages and the
brand is protected by the Italian government. Unlike
table vinegars, it is very dark and viscous with a complex,
sweet flavor and is much more expensive. True Aged balsamic
vinegar has been aged fifteen years and upwards.
The primo balsamico vinegars
have no other ingredients added to them - only
the grapes. Lesser vinegars will include brown sugar or caramel
to mimic the sweetness of the true balsamico. If a company
produces a "traditional" balsamic vinegar,
they will also produce a less costly, but high quality
vinegar as well.
View
our complimentary Balsamic Recipes.
Oil and vinegar Balsamic Salad dressings.
Balsamic vinegar is Made
by concentrated white grapes (typically,
trebbiano grapes) that has been boiled down to approximately
50% ("must") and fermenting that into alcohol.
It is then once again fermented to balsamico vinegar,
with a slow aging process
done in oak barrels that concentrates
the flavours. The flavour is magnified over decades,
with the vinegar being kept in fine wood barrels, becoming
sweet, thick and very concentrated in flavor. Some
older balsamic vinegar is added to the "must"
to create a more complex and intricate taste, and to
add acidity.
The thick syrup is transferred
to oak casks to ferment in the open
air and then starts the long evaporation and aging process
that makes aged balsamico vinegar striking and unique. Balsamic vinegar
does not deteriorate after opening as oxygen is part
of the aging process, you can appreciate your best bottle
and use it on special recipes. Do
not heat or cook balsamic vinegar
as it will ruin the flavor.
As a key ingredient
in vinaigrette dressings, balsamic goes
especially well with olive oil. Olive oil-balsamic
vinaigrette is great with seafood,
fresh spinach and asparagus. A balsamic salad dressing does well
with winter veggies such as carrots, turnips, squash
and sweet potatoes, as well as fresh mixed greens or
baby spinach.
The Mediterranean diet,
characterized by cuisine such as Italian food, has been
gaining popularity in North America, where the consumption
of traditional Mediterranean foods, such as cold pressed
olive oil and balsamic vinegar, has been increasing.
Many people are finding this diet as a healthy alternative
to fatty foods and deep fried food preparation.
