Where to find REAL Balsamic Vinegar for cheap? Cheapest I can find is $99 for 100ml.

[2timer]

I'm not sure I've ever even tasted real balsamic vinegar. Anyone who has care to tell me what it tastes like? It's basically fermented red wine vinegar, is that correct?

 

[spidey07]

Imagine a really good, really good wine but it's sweet and complex.

That's what it tastes like. Imagine if Aphrodite herself squeezed a boob into your mouth. That's what it tastes like.

Howard - I assume that's some good shit?

 

[stlc8tr]

Williams-Sonoma: http://www.williams-sonoma.com/prod...H||NoFacet-_-NoFacet-_-Feature_Recipe_Rule-_-

When I bought it it was aged 25 years. It had like 170 5 start reviews. Now it doesn't mention how long it's aged, but I could check it out. It was $28 for a 17oz 25 year aged bottle.

They stop mentioning how long it's been aged because there is no clear standards on how to measure aging.

Here's a blog post from a commercial site on this subject:

http://passionateabouttaste.blogspot.com/2011/09/igp-balsamic-vinegar.html

As we know, balsamic vinegar is aged in wooden barrels, or a series of wooden barrels. Over time the grape must reduces, becoming thicker and sweeter, until the aging process is complete. The methods used today are the same as centuries ago, the balsamic is drawn out of one barrel with a pipette and added to the next each time mixing some of the previous barrel with that of the current and so on, each year until the balsamic is bottled. (Now to the reason we can’t use numbers anymore.)

* Only the producer of the Balsamic knows how much he has actually drawn from one barrel and added to the next, so there is never a clear answer as to how aged a balsamic can be.

* Each barrel is numbered and in some cases the balsamic maker would put the barrel number on the label yet let people believe it was the age of the balsamic.

* Lastly, because there were no laws governing the production or labeling, what one producer was using as “15 year” could be another producers “5 year” in thickness and flavor.

 

[2timer]

Imagine a really good, really good wine but it's sweet and complex.

That's what it tastes like. Imagine if Aphrodite herself squeezed a boob into your mouth. That's what it tastes like.

Howard - I assume that's some good shit?

Mmmm. That sounds delightful. ()

 

[Scotteq]

Imagine a really good, really good wine but it's sweet and complex.

That's what it tastes like. Imagine if Aphrodite herself squeezed a boob into your mouth. That's what it tastes like.

Being Vinegar based, I would have thought more like Aphrodite's dou**e

 

[spidey07]

Being Vinegar based, I would have thought more like Aphrodite's dou**e

It tastes nothing like vinegar believe it or not. Way sweeter.

 

[Scotteq]

It tastes nothing like vinegar believe it or not. Way sweeter.

LIke the sweetest of Wines....







.....with a vague scent of Fish!

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Apologies for registering just to bump such an old thread, but I tried exactly that & was blown away by how much better even the stuff in marshalls is over what i've been buying in the grocery store.

So I joined hoping the above poster is still around & knows of a similar upgrade in olive oil. I'm not as interested in what's technically classified as real/not/best etc., but if just as small an increase in price will get me just as significant an upgrade in taste there too, I'd like to know about it.

Thank you.

Sorry, can't make any suggestions for their olive oils. I've only bought olive oil there once and it wasn't for my own stock.

I prefer Lucini. It's not cheap but it's the one I like so much I'm willing to pay the premium for it. Another one that I recently tried and really liked (just finished it off tonight) is a Spanish olive oil by Pompeian called Marca Roja.

 

[tranceport]

This is what I have been using for a while. http://www.amazon.com/Villa-Manodori...lsamic+vinegar

 

[Howard]

Imagine a really good, really good wine but it's sweet and complex.

That's what it tastes like. Imagine if Aphrodite herself squeezed a boob into your mouth. That's what it tastes like.

Howard - I assume that's some good shit?

It's not bad. There's some 20+ year stuff out there which I assume to be like honey.

 

[Rinaun]

I've read through this and want to try some dishes (or even just bread) with balsamic vinegar; if I don't want to piss away money for the 50+ aged sillyness, what do I want to get/make to try out how badass real balsamic vinegar is? I've only had shit-tier balsamic vinegar + bread and maybe 1-2 salads.

I'm expecting this to be like the difference between Kraft Parmesan and actual Parmigiano-Reggiano.

 

[linuxboy]

I'm expecting this to be like the difference between Kraft Parmesan and actual Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Great comparison. A tradizionale is made by reducing grape must after harvesting berries in early October. It must be reduced over a flame (no vacuum concentration), and traditionally uses wild fermentation for the alcoholic portion, and a farmstead vinegar mother for the acetification. It's rather tough to do well... once concentrated, the grape juice is not conducive to the survival of many yeast species. And the acetification process can be a bit tough, especially relying on natural mothers of vinegar.

There's a great deal of know-how involved and technical sophistication.

The cheaper balsamico de modena is made by shortcutting the whole process and not working with yeasts directly in the concentrated must. The process takes vinegar, acetified separately from wine, and concentrated must, and blends them. At times and for some makers, additives, such as caramel color, are added. You can still achieve a fine product, but the technical skill does not need to be so refined. The different processes create different products.

Most people like an 8-12 year, even for drizzling as a finish. Beyond that, the character changes. Not sure it's worth the money in some cases for most consumers. To approach honey viscosity requires a tremendous deal of skill. Unless the strain specificity (the biofermentive pathways of yeast need to be selected for balanced sucrose and fructose conversion, for starters) is done well during fermentation, and the boil process and temps done with precision, old tradizionale >15 years tends to crystallize due to excess sucrose content.

<--- producer of balsamico tradizionale

 

[Leros]

So... if I only cared about taste, is getting tradizionale actually important? Assume I'm willing to take a 10% loss of flavor to get vinegar that costs a lot less.

 

[linuxboy]

The fermentation process in tradizionale is responsible for a ton of flavor. Because a lot of it is produced from yeast and bacteria strains isolated in the region, and because the fermentation is slow and ongoing for years, as the microbes die, their guts flavor the product (think of "sur lees" style wine for a comparison). In a more industrial process, the flavors will be really clean. They use strains selected for performance, to make sure that the output is repeatable.

Another source of flavor is the wood selection. In balsamico de modena, mostly oak is used. In tradizionale, multiple wood species (oak, chestnut, acacia, cherry, juniper, etc) all contribute their aroma and flavor. And not only that, but also the woods have different evaporation rates... eg chestnut is more porous and will produce a thicker viscosity.

So I guess it depends on your palate. You can buy excellent, inexpensive balsamico de modena that is balanced for acidity, sweetness, and usually has decent viscosity. If you're after flavor that builds and develops and changes, it's somewhat hard to get that even with a 10-12 year balsamico de modena. The process and microbial differences account for rather dramatic flavor differences.

 

[MarkXIX]

Here's what I do and I'm quite happy with it:

1) Buy a good $10 or so bottle from the local supermarket
2) Pour about 1 cup or so in a small skillet on low heat
3) Add about 1 tbsp. honey
4) Reduce, stirring occasionally until it thickens
5) Allow to cool and apply to whatever sounds good (strawberries, cheese, good bread, chicken, salad, whatever, it doesn't matter, it will taste good)

Now, admittedly I haven't had the super spendy shit. I will one day when I feel like it, but for now this is what I do and it tastes just fine to me.

 

[AreaCode707]

I use the knockoff stuff for salad because I like the tartness. A good 15+ year tradizionale should be eaten with sliced strawberries, on a good cheese or something similar. It's like truffle oil; use sparingly in a dish where it is showcased.

 

[W.C. Nimoy]

Sorry, can't make any suggestions for their olive oils. I've only bought olive oil there once and it wasn't for my own stock.

I prefer Lucini. It's not cheap but it's the one I like so much I'm willing to pay the premium for it. Another one that I recently tried and really liked (just finished it off tonight) is a Spanish olive oil by Pompeian called Marca Roja.

According to lucini's website, krogers & walmart carries it. I'm just to the end of a bottle of colavita too, so perfect timing to try a new one. Thanks for the recommendation.

 

[zinfamous]

What are you using it for? Real Modena balsamic can be had for far less though it depends on how long it's aged.

Personally, I buy decent balsamic and then create a reduction to concentrate it for use in dressings and on things like a caprese salad (which I had tonight with a 15 year old balsamic reduced down).

REAL balsamic is about $80 for several cl. the majority of stuff you find out there is actually just reduced red wine vinegar. Yes, even the "real Modena balsamic vinegar."

Of course, Modena brand (and region, of course) does make real balsamic vinegar, but it is never ever cheap.

 

[AreaCode707]

REAL balsamic is about $80 for several cl. the majority of stuff you find out there is actually just reduced red wine vinegar. Yes, even the "real Modena balsamic vinegar."

Of course, Modena brand (and region, of course) does make real balsamic vinegar, but it is never ever cheap.

Rule of thumb: Look at the ingredients. If "grape must" is an ingredient then you have a blended vinegar, not a true balsamico style aged vinegar. Not a bad thing, it's just going to be salad vinegar.

If you don't have grape must as ingredient, you're good and you want to then look at the age of the vinegar to determine the flavor. At the 15 year mark you're in "caprese" territory. Beyond the 20 year mark you're probably ok to use it as a dessert balsamico.

 

[Howard]

Rule of thumb: Look at the ingredients. If "grape must" is an ingredient then you have a blended vinegar, not a true balsamico style aged vinegar. Not a bad thing, it's just going to be salad vinegar.

If you don't have grape must as ingredient, you're good and you want to then look at the age of the vinegar to determine the flavor. At the 15 year mark you're in "caprese" territory. Beyond the 20 year mark you're probably ok to use it as a dessert balsamico.

linuxboy just said a few posts ago that tradizionale balsamico is made with a reduction of grape must...

 

[jupiter57]

For salad and dipping with olive oil. The minimum aging it seems is 12 years. I assume the longer the aging the better.

So where can you find it on the web for cheaper?

Good God, Son!
You are 17 years old, are you still afraid to go out in public?

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

REAL balsamic is about $80 for several cl. the majority of stuff you find out there is actually just reduced red wine vinegar. Yes, even the "real Modena balsamic vinegar."

Of course, Modena brand (and region, of course) does make real balsamic vinegar, but it is never ever cheap.

The way to tell between the real stuff (at least for the Italian balsamics) is to look at the label. If it says "Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale" it is the real thing. If it says "Aceto Balsamico" it's the cheap stuff and likely has little to no aging. If it says "Condimento" it probably a mix between the two.

Yes, the real stuff is not cheap. $80 is on the very low end of what you can find it for.

 

[AreaCode707]

linuxboy just said a few posts ago that tradizionale balsamico is made with a reduction of grape must...

Process v ingredients. You start with must as part of the process to make balsamic, but you don't list it as an ingredient because it becomes something else in the process. The blended stuff has actual unchanged must in it, so it gets listed as an ingredient.

 

[Howard]

Process v ingredients. You start with must as part of the process to make balsamic, but you don't list it as an ingredient because it becomes something else in the process.

What would that "something else" be listed as in the final ingredient list?

 

[AreaCode707]

What would that "something else" be listed as in the final ingredient list?

I've always seen it just listed as either balsamic, vinegar or balsamic vinegar. "Vinegar - ingredients: vinegar." Heh.

[Edit] Like how this one lists both vinegar and must as ingredients; it's blended. The good stuff isn't blended, it's just aged vinegar by itself that was started from cooked grape must and aged in wooden barrels.