Read the full book on the history of vinegar, Vinegar, The Eternal Condiment available on Amazon! Besides raw material, one of the big differentiators between premium and regular vinegars is the aging process. This can range from 2 months for Balsamic of Modena IGP to 6 months for basic sherry vinegar to 12 years for Gran Reserva Sherry or 25 … Read More
The ambivalent status of French Vinegar
French vinegar is good, but can it stand out? If there would be a country responsible for the development and refinement of vinegar in modern Europe, it would be France. Through the pre-Revolution corporations in many cities, especially the vinegar “capital” of Orléans, the Western traditional method of vinegar making matured from the 14th to 18th centuries. Though France was … Read More
Vinegar enters the trade wars
Vinegar, that titan of international commerce…. (only $500 million traded per year globally) True or not, vinegar has found its way into the crosshairs of the growing trade war between the US and China. In the most recent round of tariff proposals, which were originally set at 10% but are now 25%, the US added HTS code 2209 – which … Read More
My vinegar smells like acetone (nail polish remover)!
If you make vinegar long enough you have to tackle almost every problem. I sometimes get emails and questions about an “acetone” smell from vinegar, very similar to nail polish remover. What does this mean? First, you must understand the process by which acetic acid bacteria turn alcohol into vinegar. The short chemical pathway is: Alcohol (Ethanol) + Oxygen -> … Read More
Vinegar Acidities – Levels and Usage
We have talked about acidity a bit on this blog, from how to measure acidity and how it is different from pH to comparing the acidity of Coca-Cola and vinegar. Vinegar obviously comes in different acidities though. Which one do you need? How do they help? Below is a quick and informative guide to vinegar acidities and their usages. Acidity … Read More
Vinegar/Kombucha Acidity Testing and Microbiological Analysis Services
Here at Supreme Vinegar we frequently get inquiries about testing vinegar acidity or even questions about what bacteria someone’s vinegar has. We frequently test all of these in our own vinegars and would now like to extend our services to all home vinegar or kombucha makers. Vinegar/Kombucha Acidity Testing Acidity testing is done using sodium hydroxide titration and the average … Read More
pH and acidity exercise: Vinegar vs. Coca Cola
Based on our last post outlining the differences between pH and acidity as measures of acid strength, a short exercise will help emphasize the differences. Here we will compare two deceptively similar acids: 5% store bought white vinegar and Coca-Cola classic. White Vinegar As stated before, 5% white vinegar has an acidity of 5% which means 5 grams of … Read More
pH and acidity – their difference and importance in vinegar
Those who know vinegar know acidity is of prime importance in measuring the completion and strength of vinegar. Acetic acid is what distinguishes vinegar and global standards of taste and safety specify minimum acidity levels for vinegar. The more widely recognized measurement of the strength of an acid (or base) is the pH scale. Many people know pH is important … Read More
Temperature and Speed for Bacterial Fermentation
Much of the food we love to ferment is fermented by bacteria. Obviously vinegar, which my company is dedicated to, is a prime example with several families of acetic acid bacteria contributing depending on the method of vinegar fermentation, acidity, and starter alcohol. For a variety of fermented foods, however, lactic acid fermentation by various lactic acid bacteria is primary. … Read More
What does it mean to measure vinegar with ‘grains’?
Read the full book on the history of vinegar, Vinegar, The Eternal Condiment available on Amazon! As vinegar’s industrialization spread globally in the early 20th century industry terminology became standardized. In particular, it was found that the sale of vinegar was confusing without a standard nomenclature for the strength of the vinegar. Percent acidity is the commonly known term for … Read More
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