aged balsamic vinegar
balsamico Vinegar
is a traditional thick flavoured vinegar ordinarily used
in Italian food preparation. It is often used as a salad
vinaigrette when combined with olive oil or as a marinade. It
is a traditional import that was developed in Modena, Italy,
where it has been Made since the Middle Ages and the
brand is protected by the Italian government. Unlike
table vinegars, it is dark and viscous with a complex,
sweet flavor and is much more expensive. True Balsamico
vinegar has been aged fifteen years and upwards.
The primo aged balsamic vinegars
have no other ingredients added to them - only
the trebbiano grapes. Lesser vinegars will include brown sugar or caramel
to simulate the sweetness of the true balsamic vinegars. If a company
makes a "traditional" aged balsamic vinegar,
they will also develop a less costly, but high quality
vinegar as well.
View
our complimentary Balsamic Recipes.
Oil and vinegar Balsamic Dressings.
Balsamic vinegar is Created
by reduced 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 wood barrels that concentrates
the flavors. The flavour is magnified over decades,
with the aged balsamic vinegar being kept in fine oak barrels, becoming
sweet, thick and very concentrated in flavour. Some
older balsamic vinegar is added to the "must"
to create a more complex and intricate taste, and to
add acidity.
The syrup is transferred
to oak casks to ferment in the open
air and then begins the long dehydration and aging process
that makes aged balsamic vinegar unique. Balsamic vinegar
does not go bad after opening as oxygen is part
of the aging process, you can cherish your finest bottle
and use it on special occasions. Do
not heat or cook balsamic vinegar
as it will destroy the flavour.
As a key component
in vinaigrette dressings, balsamic blends
particularly well with olive oil. Olive oil-balsamic
vinaigrette is great with lobster,
artichokes and asparagus. A balsamic 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.
