Spanish balsamic
balsamico Vinegar
is a authentic heavy flavoured vinegar ordinarily used
in Italian recipes. It is typically used as a salad
vinaigrette when combined with oil or as a marinade. It
is a traditional food product originating in Modena, Italy,
where it has been Created since the Middle Ages and the
brand is protected by the Italian government. Unlike
most common vinegars, it is dark and viscous with a complex,
sweet flavor and is much more pricey. True Aged balsamic
vinegar has been aged in casks 15 years and upwards.
The primo aged balsamic vinegars
have nothing else added to them - only
the grapes. Lesser ones will add brown sugar or caramel
to feign the sweetness of the better ones. If a company
produces a "traditional" balsamic vinegar,
they will also create a less costly, but high quality
vinegar as well.
View
our complimentary Balsamic vinaigrette Recipes.
Oil and vinegar Balsamic Dressings.
Balsamic vinegar is Produced
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 balsamic vinegar,
with a slow aging process
done in oak casks that concentrates
the flavors. The flavor is magnified over decades,
with the vinegar being kept in fine oak barrels, becoming
sweet, syrupy and very concentrated in flavor. Some
aged balsamic vinegar is added to the "must"
to make 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 dehydration and aging process
that makes aged balsamic vinegar striking and unique. Balsamic vinegar
does not deteriorate after opening as oxygen is part
of the aging process, you can cherish your finest bottle
and use it on special occasions. Do
not overheat or cook balsamic vinegar
as it will destroy the taste.
As a key ingredient
in vinaigrette dressings, balsamic goes
especially well with olive oil. Olive oil-balsamic
vinaigrette is great with lobster and scallops,
spinach and asparagus. A balsamic dressing does well
with winter vegetables such as carrots, turnips, squash
and sweet potatoes, as well as spring 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.
