Balsamic vinegar originated in Modena, Italy during the Middle Ages. During the Renaissance, it was highly favored by gourmet chefs, and has since become one of Italy's most cherished exports. 

Grape must is made from all parts of the pressed grape, the skin, the pulp and the juice. This product is cooked down to a rich and intense consistency and then fermented and aged in wood barrels where it is slowly reduced and concentrated through evaporation. The most expensive balsamic vinegars are almost 100% must and cane be aged for up to 50 years! These extremely expensive vinegars are tightly controlled by an Italian oversight body to ensure quality and to prevent over production. And they are only sold and exported in very specific (consortium approved) 100 ml bottles.

Small amounts of wine vinegar can be added to grape must to increase shelf stability, but the amount of wine vinegar used in the balsamic can also be increased to make a more affordable product as wine vinegar is very inexpensive relative to grape must. Thus, a wide variety of flavor profiles and price points for balsamic vinegar can be created by modifying different parts of the balsamic production process, such as how much grape must vs. wine vinegar is used, what type of wood barrels the products are aged in and how long are they aged, and even what grapes are used and how are they grown.

We purchase directly from a family owned and operated producer in Modena, Italy specifically chosen because we love the choices they have made and because they work directly with us to produce a product to our specification. A quick list of the many things we love about our supplier includes:

  • They grow their own grapes using organic processes. Thus we are ensured of the purity, consistency and quality of the grapes which are the key raw material going into the vinegar.

  • They use aged oak barrels resulting in lots of character and flavor.

  • Both the must and the wine vinegar come from the same grape and are aged to ensure that there is minimal reduction in flavor when the wine vinegar is added. 

  • They use a very high quantity of grape must relative to wine vinegar per our specification which creates low acidity, an amazing sweetness and flavor of the grape, high viscosity and wonderful mouth feel.

We use this base for all of our dark flavored products. The intensity of the base will result in more subtlety of the flavors, but let it spread over your tongue and you will definitely detect what you are looking for.

Our white balsamic vinegar is created by the same producer with the same high quality and quantity of grape must. Filtering is used to pull out the sources of color such as the skin of the grape. Cooking is done to minimize caramelization and aging is done in barrels that do not impart color to the product. The result is wonderfully thick and sweet product with lots of fruit character, but lighter color and mellower overall experience.

We use this base for our flavored white balsamics. These products will sing out with flavor intensity to take all of your salads to a new level!