 |
 |
|
The Range of Vecchia Æmilia
 Balsamic Vinegar, aceto balsamico, is an "authentic elixir" which is capable of heightening flavor and adding a touch of perfection to dishes, from the most elaborate and refined to the most humble. Balsamic Vinegar and Traditional Balsamic Vinegar differ from each other in how they are made, matured and how they taste.
Aceto Balsamico is the result of a blend of cooked grape must "mosto cotto", and high quality wine vinegar from the region. It is aged in barrels of varying sizes and woods while its acetification and oxidation takes place. Some are aged as little as 2 years; Vecchia Æmilia spends a minimum of 8 years aging in barrel.
Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale, Traditional Balsamic Vinegar, from Reggio Emilia comes from the fermentation and acetification of cooked must. But the real secret Traditional Balsamic Vinegar lies in the ageing process which is carried out in sets of different wooden barrels over a long period of time, never less than 12 years.
The refining of the bouquet and flavor is the most complex phase, and this is when the experience of the master vinegar maker is essential. While the acetification process of ordinary vinegar is based on wine, the production of aceto balsamico tradizionale is based on cooked must. The classical tradition requires that the production be made in small wooden barrels, arranged in sets of no less than three.
Starting with only specific grapes varieties from Reggio Emilia, primarily trebbiano and lambrusco, the grape must is concentrated by more than 50% by gentle heating. The cooked must is then cooled and aged in demijohns over the winter. In spring, first alcoholic and then acetic fermentation take place, aided by the exposure to the vinegar "mother". Over the next twelve to seventy five years aging takes place in a "battery" of successively smaller and diverse barrels, the size ranging from 20 liters to 4.5 liters. The most common woods used are oak, chestnut, mulberry, cherry, ash and juniper, and each one lending a particular aroma to the vinegar and making it "unique". Oxidation is key here: the barrels are only filled to two thirds and sealed with gauze rather than bungs. Temperature fluctuation is encouraged. The typical "acetaia" is in a drafty loft. Every year over ten percent of the volume is lost due to evaporation. Finally, a maximum of 3 liters, or never more than 20% of the smallest barrel, is drawn off and presented to the "consorzio" for strict evaluation of its sensory characteristics and awarded its classification.
Why the three levels of Lobster Red, Silver or Gold? The three represent different lengths of maturation in barrel, and equate to different levels of concentration and flavor. The three roughly correspond to 25, 50 and 75 years respectively, in barrel.
The "Lobster Red Seal" (Bollino Aragosta, 12-20 years barrel aged) is slightly more sour, with a more pronounced volatile acidity and less sweetness than the others. Thanks to its soft and delicate fragrance and a good acidity it is best used to enrich "carpaccio", crudities and salads; it can be used to flavor shellfish, lamb chops, chicken breasts or rare-cooked red meats, just before serving, and is perfect in gravies for game and poultry.
The "Silver Seal" (Bollino Argento, 20-25 years barrel aged) has even more enhanced characteristics, because of further aging. It is used more in its raw form, and less in cooking, due to its softer and sweeter nature. This personality makes it more suitable for pasta and rice dishes, soufflés, risottos, sauces, and light cooking. It has a stronger fragrance, a little on the sweet side, and its acidity is richer and thicker. It is perfect for use as a raw addition to mayonnaise, or in sauces for fish and boiled meat, in vegetable risottos or with scampi, in rich and noble pasta dishes, with fillet of beef or with duck livers. Its volatile acidity is masked by its fixed acidity, with a sweet and lasting overall taste.
The "Gold Seal" (Bollino Oro, 25 years barrel aged) is not used as a dressing, but almost exclusively at the end of a meal. It is an extraordinary and complex product, with rich and harmonious fragrances that tend more to the sweet than to the sour, with a noble, persuasive and persistent structure. It is suitable for strong, well-flavored and spicy cheeses, for fruit salads with fruits of the forest, strawberries or cherries, for custard cream and ice cream, for panettone or strudel, but above all it is a real elixir to be sipped from a spoon or drunk from a small glass at the end of the meal.
One commandment for the chef for all three of the Traditional Balsamic Vinegars from Reggio Emilia is: avoid long cooking times. The vinegar should be cooked only for a few moments, just to be heated without losing any of the aromas that have been refined over such a long period of time.
 Click here to order
|
|
