Aceto Balsamico

The highest art of vinegar (aceto in Italian) making in Italy is known as Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale (ABT).  Sadly, the reputation of this exceptional product has been bastardized by low-grade products bearing the same name and which only ever so faintly resemble the real thing.  There are, however, two bits of good news.  First, it is quite simple to recognize a ‘real’ ABT.  It will be always be sold in one of two distinct bottle types (the difference being that of the two competing DOC’s, Modena and Reggio Emilia, both strictly controlled by respective ‘Consorzios’1). Second, you do not always need the best balsamico for every dish and, in fact, that might be ill-advised even if you could afford it.

Let’s begin by describing the ‘tradizionale’ process.  The heart of every balsamico is grapes2 and the primary variety is Trebbiano (in particular a Spanish variety with an even higher sugar content).  You will also see a mixture of Lambrusco, Sauvignon, Spergola and Sgavetta grapes, but the most important guidelines are that they come from the Italian provinces of Reggio-Emilia and Modena (In the state of Emilia-Romagna), have a maximum yield per hectare and a minimum sugar content.

The distinctive bottles indicating that the vinegar is DOC approved in Reggio Emilia (left) or Modena (right).

Once you have harvested the grapes, they are gently3 crushed to yield their juice (known as must, or mosto in Italian) and then immediately cooked over an open fire (a DOP requirement) at a minimum of 80° C.  Here is where the first difference comes in amongst the Aceto producers.  Some will cook their must longer at a lower temperature (One Reggio producer, for example, will go 36-40 hours at 80° whereas one from Modena does 16-18 hours at 90-95°).  The DOP minimum standard is 80° to insure that the bacteria is all killed, however, if the must is cooked at too hot a temperature, then you risk caramelizing the sugar which leads to an undesirable taste.  Another slight difference between the aceto producers is the sugar percentage after the cooking.  The range, however, will be between 28 and 33 percent (higher than 33 will interfere with the natural workings of the yeast and vinegar bacteria ).  What this means is that, after you have reached your desired sugar content, from say, 100 liters of must (for which you need 200 kgs of grapes), you will have approx. 60 liters of finished grape juice which is then allowed to ‘rest’ until spring (so that the sediments can settle).  At that time the must is added to the ‘mother barrel’ (botte Madre, a barrel with the bacterial colonies from previous batches) where the warm summer temperature begins the conversion into alcohol and vinegar.  Patience, only twelve years more to go.

The next DOP standard which must be fulfilled is the staggering of different size barrels4 used for aging the product.  The types of wood to be used is not specified, but most producers will vary the barrels for the different flavor and color characteristics the wood adds.  More on that later.  Let’s fill the first barrel (known as Rincalzo) with juice from the mother barrel (where the transformation to aceto has already begun).  The general rule would be 3/4 full, however, because the evaporation might be too severe during the summer, it might be more usual to almost fill to the top.  The second phase is known as Travaso which simply means transferring the contents of the first barrel to the second which could be anytime after one year.  This cycle will continue until you come to the smallest barrel when you finally get to perform Prelievo (after a minimum of twelve years aging) which is the removal of a small amount of the precious fluid5 and sending it to the consorzio for judging.  If the five-panel board awards you sufficient points, you may allow them to officially bottle your product (for a hefty surcharge) thereby preventing any shenanigans and return it to the producer as saleable ABT.  This is the theory, anyway6. Reality depends very much on the individual producer, however, you can be pretty sure that the official bottle is the ‘real’ thing.

Here is a five barrel battery giving some possible examples of woods that might be used.  Castania (chestnut), for example, is very important for coloration and acidic development.  Cherry imparts a sweetness and juniper7 or mulberry provide a spicy aroma.  Oak’s dense wood structure allows less evaporation.  There aren’t really any hard and fast wood rules (I’ve seen mulberry used for the first barrel, for example), and, as usual, it comes down to your own taste preferences8 and luck9.

While the aceto producer will taste and analyze each barrel of each battery every year and record the results (and manipulate the direction of the acidic development by variations in the must - perhaps a higher or lower sugar percentage), the DOP standards clearly prohibits the addition of any aromas, flavors or chemicals.

A quick recap.  The procedure for ‘real’ balsamic vinegar is

1. Pure (Trebbiano/Lambrusco) grape juice;
2. Reduced in an open container with nothing added except perhaps a little ‘mother’;
3. Aged in a variety of flavor enhancing wooden casks;
4. For a minium of twelve years to complete the maturing/mellowing of the vinegar.

Final annual total production?  About 100,000 100 ml (3 ounces) bottles, and, at $75 -$200 per 100 ml bottle, Tradizionale remains essentially a curiosity for most consumers.

The Real World

But what is commercial Balsamic (sometimes with ‘di Modena’)?  The fact is, there are no standards or controls. You’ll get any mixture of wine vinegar, sugar, water, conservatives, caramel and flavorings usually accelerated to make something only very vaguely approximating the Tradizionale. But you don’t have to be an economist to know products are made to a price point, so your best bet in finding an affordable balsamic is to examine the ingredients. The absolute undoubtedly without question most important item is the ‘must’ content.  Normal commercial balsamics will start with wine vinegar. You want to see ‘must’as the first ingredient. After that, look at the age (tradizionale manufacturers, for example, will release all-must barrel-aged vinegars anytime between two and twelve years at different prices. It will not, of course, have the word Tradizionale on the label) and then the production location. You might ask for recommendations and then start experimenting.  By the way, did I mention looking at the must content?

Sold as "3 years old", this young vinegar is made from pure must, following the traditional process, but bottled before the DOC minimum of 12 years.

This widely available and well-reviewed commercial balsamic vinegar lists as ingredients:  wine vinegar, concentrated must, cooked must, and artifial coloring agent E 150 d.

I would recommend double-blind taste testing. Choose three different types of reasonably priced balsamic vinegar, say under $10.00 (or the even more daring could put in one all-must $25.00 bottle, say three years old) and then number the bottles and match the numbers to three tasting cups (but on the bottom so that no one can see the number on the cup). You will certainly find one you prefer, and, you hope, one which your fellow tasters agree upon.

There is one final twist.  You’ll probably find that one balsamic, for example, goes better as a condiment in your Tuscan farmer’s white bean soup, while another competitor is better on salad10. The more adventurous might trust their palates so completely that they’d blend the different commercial balsamics until they’d concocted their personal favorite. Go ahead, I dare you. The worst thing that can happen is you add some herbs, soy sauce, olive oil, maybe a little sugar and marinate chicken breasts or pork chops in it, bake for thirty odd minutes and you have a healthy meal11.

The restaurant at Acetaia Picci features balsamic vinegar "argento" (silver, at least 18 year old) on onion-apple crepes, beef with a sauce of 7 year old "condimento", and finishes with strawberries in custard dressed with balsamic vinegar "oro" (gold, at least 25 year old).