We know that for many of our readers this recipe it might seem an unusual pairing. As Modenese, we truly believe that a good Balsamic Vinegar from Modena will amaze even the most sceptical.

You just need a few simple ingredients that will allow you to prepare a unique risotto with the special taste of the Balsamic Vinegar.

Ingredients for 4 people:

• 400 g of rice (Vialone Nano or Carnaroli)
• 1 golden onion or 4 shallots
• 1 glass of white wine
• 3 spoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 40 g of butter
• 1 litre of vegetable broth
• 100 g of grated Parmigiano Reggiano (at least 24 months aged)
• Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PDO

Preparation:

The preparation of the Risotto with Balsamic Vinegar is quite simple.
First of all, start frying the onion or the shallots (finely treated) in the oil in a pan (the same pan that you will use to cook the rice).
When it has dried, add the rice and let it toast for a couple of minutes.
At this point, add the glass of white wine and once it has evaporated, start cooking the rice with the vegetable broth. Remember to add the broth a little at a time. Wait until the cooking is complete.

When the rice has reached the optimal cooking, add the Parmigiano Reggiano and the butter to mix it.
Finally, add one spoon of Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena.

Once you have served the rice on a plate, we recommend you add a flake of Parmigiano Reggiano and some drops of Balsamic. This final touch will flavour the dish and give it an artistic look.

Of course, to make Risotto with Balsamic Vinegar, you can also use a good Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI instead of the “Traditional” one. If you don’t remember what the difference between the two products is, you should take a look at our Blog.

The dish is ready, enjoy your meal.
Best wishes from Modena.

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In the latest years, many experts are increasing the focus on the concept of sustainable eating. It deals with both the respectful behavior towards the biodiversity and ecosystem and the accessibility to a healthy nutrition which is convenient to you pocket as well. In addition to this, the concept of sustainability refers to production of food which uses farming techniques and practices that help to preserve natural resources and have minimal impact on the environment. As a matter of fact, the sustainable nutrition does not imply polluting emissions or waste of energy, such as the usage of fertilizers and pesticides.

As a consequence of the definition above, it can clearly defined the production of the Balsamic Vinegar as a sustainable production. Actually, the Balsamic Vinegar follows these criteria because its production its strictly associated with the tradition of the territory. Indeed, according to the traditional production, the Balsamic Vinegar does not contain additional ingredients but just the grapes must coming from the wine varieties of the territory. That is a fundamental undertone of the Balsamic Vinegar because it relies on the uniqueness of the weather conditions of this area and the passion of the producers which goes from generation to generation.

A key aspect to be taken into consideration is the fact that the Balsamic Vinegar is not a mainstream product and its production takes place in family companies using their best way of doings and keeping their traditional production stages alive. In fact, they produce this excellence using the specialist knowledge of the technique coming from their ancient producers of the family and keeping the main good, that is the must as it is, without any industrial additives, which are usually used in the industrial production.

L-Originale Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena: www.l-originale.com

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The usable grapes to produce cooked must are: Trebbiano and Lambrusco in all varieties and clones and Ancellotta, as well as smaller grapes such as Sauvignon, Sgavetta, Berzemino and Occhio di Gatta. The most important phase of the grape vegetative cycle, which is concerned with maturation, is whether it is possible overcrowding. Maturation is the phase that normally begins at the end of June which ends with the collection.
It is precisely now that the grapes undergo the greatest physical growth in the volume corresponding to an increase in both sugars and colorants. In this stage, finally, the aromatic substances begin to form. The next step, surimitation, is a fundamental stage for grapes destined for production of original Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of  Modena DOP; This phase begins at the end of the maturation phase and lasts for 10/15 days if the climatic conditions allow it.

At this point a question arises spontaneously: what is the right time to collect it? According to what was said before, it would be spontaneous to say as later as possible so it will be the raw must and consequently the final result cooked. There are, however, factors that do not allow us to follow this almost banal suggestion. In primary organizational factors as harvesting often lasts several days so the fact that I will finish collecting grapes of different maturation. Second and perhaps most important the climate risks; in fact, the surmounting phase takes place in the autumnal phase where greater is the risk of time breaks that can take several days to end the long-awaited wait. It is therefore necessary to evaluate the risks that are going to run.

Interesting, isn’t it? Let me know what you think in the comments!

L-Originale Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena: www.l-originale.com

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Ingredients 4 people amount:

200 g ( 7.04 oz- 0.44 lb) of desalinated dried cod, 3 big potatoes, 3 spoons of fresh cream, 1 egg albumen, 10 black olives (like Taggiasche), 2 anchovy fillets, salt, tabasco, oil for frying, 2 spoons of original Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI, 3 spoons of cane sugar, 1 spoon and a half of sugar, 3 eggs, 1 cup of bread-crumbs, 1 spoon and a half of grated Parmesan cheese, 2 little pieces of butter.

Execution:

Prepare a sauce warming butter, Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI, sugar and cane sugar.

Cook it on a slow fire until it thickens.

Boil potatoes and peel them completely.

Grease slightly the fish, put it into a baking-pan and bake it into warm oven.

When it cools, put cod into a mixer with cream, olives, minced anchovy fillets, Tabasco, albumen and mix everything.

Blend boiled potatoes with the mixture.

If the mixture comes out too fluid, add some spoons of bread-crumbs until it thickens.

Beat up eggs.

Form rissoles from the mixture, dip them into beaten eggs and then into bread-crumbs previously mixed with Parmesan cheese.

Fry rissoles in warm oil, then dry them with paper.

Serve rissoles with original Balsamic Vinegar PGI sauce.

L-Originale Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena: www.l-originale.com

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The answer lies in two important features of the vinegar: its ageing and its density. The more these two criteria raise, the more the price will increase. First of all, you need to differentiate Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena DOP in two qualities: “Affinato” which indicates that it is at least 12 years old; and “Extra Vecchio” which is at least 25 years old. This division helps to understand the different price list, for instance, as far as Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena Extravecchio DOP is concerned, a bottle of 100 ml costs more than 150 euro and as far as Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena Affinato DOP is concerned, a bottle of 100 ml costs more than 90 euro.

At this regard, L-Originale, the new-brand company from Modena, came up with the idea of a special line called Inspiration Line, which provides the chance to taste this wonderful delicacy at a minor price without losing the quality of the excellent must.  Each of these products is homemade that means without any industrial process but according to traditions of our land selecting the best producers in order to ensure the maximum sensorial experience. Furthermore, this line offers the best value for money: It’s made of several high quality products which have been extra selected to guarantee an easier approach to the interested people who want to find out these delicious tastes. It is addressed to everyone who loves Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena DOP giving the opportunity to appreciate the high quality in an affordable way.

The Inspiration Line consists of two entry-level Traditional Balsamic DOP Vinegars:

“Isabella” – Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PDO Affinato – Aged min. 12 years.

“Adele” Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PDO Extra Vecchio – Aged min 25 years.

Thanks to their ageing in wooden barrels, they gain a fruity aroma and an intense persisting flavor as well.  The perfect touch for your best dishes. As a matter of fact, it is used by the most famous Chefs in the world, who are constantly searching for the most innovative, genuine and glamour recipes.

What are you waiting for? Let’s cook your next recipe with one of these two delicacies and surprise your guests!

And, if you need a very good vinegar with the right value for money, take a look to this Amazon items!

L-Originale Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena: www.l-originale.com

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First, we have three ways to recognize a good aged balsamic vinegar: visual, olfactory and taste analysis.

Let’s start with the visual analysis!
To evaluate the quality of a aged original balsamic vinegar of Modena, pour in a glass about 20 g of vinegar. With a rotating movement, typical of wine tasting, you can observe the density level of balsamic vinegar. The more the veil of vinegar on the glass walls will often be, the more vinegar is dense. By placing a candle lit below the chalice, you can see its clarity. Colour must be of a beautiful brown dark, load and bright; The density, on the other hand, must be syrupy and liquid. A different colour or too liquid consistency indicates poor quality of the starting wine.

For the second analysis, take the cup with your right hand , in way to heat its contents. With your left hand, however, cover your glass. Remain like this until the vinegar will not be slightly heated. At this point, take your left hand out of the chalice and breathe, three times and in discontinuous, with closed eyes. Try to smell the scent and acidity of aged balsamic vinegar, as well as their intensity and persistence. The smell of a good aged balsamic vinegar must be complex but balanced, strong but at the same time sweet and, above all, persistent.

Finally, we now analyse the real tasting process. At this stage, you have to taste a small amount. Once the vinegar is brought to the mouth, pour the liquid against the palate: so, the bouquet of perfumes and aromas will be released throughout the oral cavity. At this point, keep the origina balsamic vinegar in the mouth by sliding it evenly on the tongue and then inside the cable. The flavour should be sweet but slightly acidic, aromatic and intense.

L-Originale Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena: www.l-originale.com

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Indeed, once fermented and acidified, the product begins to mature and aging, two phases characterized by the effect of enzymes dispersed in the liquid by the autolysis of microorganisms. Enzymes catalyse chemical-physical processes that produce more and more complex flavours and scents. In addition to this, during the years of maturation and aging, the traditional balsamic vinegar undergoes to a continuous concentration, due to the loss of aqueous volume by evaporation.

Indeed, aging is first linked to the time that balsamic vinegar spends inside the various barrels defined as “age” or “residence time”, but also to all the time dependent changes in chemical, physical and sensory properties of traditional balsamic vinegar.

The maturation phase lasts for about ten years: summed up with the two years required for the fermentation and acetification of the starting product, this justifies the 12 years required as a minimum requirement for the definition of ABTM (Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena). The 25 years required for the old product are instead arbitrarily defined, as enzymatic and oxidative processes have practically no end, lasting for centuries. To allow the continuous exchange of oxygen, it is essential that ABTM should be stored and aged in substantially open containers: wood plays this fundamental role, as it is a material which allows the air passage.

The wooden barrell set is necessarily located in a place that is affected by thermal excursions between day and night, but even more between summer and winter. conversely, the cold winter is needed to slow down the evaporative process. And even today, barrels are located in the attic of the houses, so they expose aging vinegar both to the stiff winters and to the emilian summers.

Did you like this secret? Let me know what you think in the comments!

L-Originale Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena: www.l-originale.com

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During the natural aging process the product develops a progressive thick balsamic ness which, however does not have to become excessive. 

As you may imagine a thick balsamic vinegar  is a sign for a superior quality product, its density is considered a positive characteristic.

During the natural aging process the consistency improves gradually but it doesn’t have to be excessive.

Let’s clear up this matter.

Original Balsamic Vinegar of Modena IGP (it can be sold by law on an industrial scale after only 60 aging days and a minimum density of 1,06) For this kind of vinegar only:
Cooked must, Wine vinegar, And a maximum of 2% of caramel, are requested by law.

Usually on the data sheet or label of the product you can also read a value of density. In this case you should prefer products with a higher density, as this means an increased percentage of cooked must in it (positive feature).

How can you calculate the density of the product?
According to weight to liter: if the weight of one liter of final product is 1,10 kg, its density is 1,10.
If the weight of one liter of final product is 1,20 kg, its density is 1,20.

But beware: a high density can also be a negative feature!

This phenomenon usually occurs with the original Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PDO, where the only admitted ingredient by law is the cooked must (this product is handmade and sold after an aging of minimum 12 or 25 years in wood barrels).

A too thick traditional balsamic vinegar is NOT a good vinegar as the refining of the product in the barrel was not correct.

As you may notice in the video, sometimes the product gets an appearance and consistency, which render it unusable.

The exact viscosity and pourability, which are the essential features for an excellent Traditional Balsamic Vinegar falls through and a very dense layer of the product settles to the bottom of the bottle. The flavour of the product remains unchanged but if you taste it you may feel a light granularity, which can spoil your recipes.

Have you ever tried a real thick Traditional Balsamic vinegar of Modena POD?

L-Originale Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena: www.l-originale.com

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Vinegar is essential for many preparations and it has become a valuable element to be served, cooked or raw, to confer a peculiar touch to different dishes. Each recipe should use its own one, in other to enhance its flavor. 

Nowadays many countries use vinegar in everyday cooking life and, although the most precious and impeccable one is the Balsamic, a lot of countries, such as Germany, keep on using wine vinegars. This is a type of vinegar obtained from white or red wine, whose main difference, in comparison to Balsamic, can be found, apart from the taste, in the color and in the density.

In the market there are a lot of wine vinegar’s brands. The best qualities are aged in wooden barrels for at least two years and have a complex flavor and grade of maturation. Champagne vinegar and Sherry vinegar represent the most famous type of wine from which vinegar can be obtained from.

Sherry  vinegar are known by chefs and connoisseurs around the world for their aromas. They are natural products, free of any preservatives or colorants added, obtained starting from wines of Sherry, a renowned creation of Spain. Aged for about five and a half years in oak barrels it presents a golden color tending to amber, an intense scent, with hints of aromatic herbs and a full and strong taste.

Even if it is used to flavor meat or fish, the ideal Sherry vinegar’s food matching is with sweets.

Therefore, in terms of flavour, if you are searching for something traditional and exclusive we suggest you the unique and precious Balsamic Vinegar original.

L-Originale Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena: www.l-originale.com

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First of all, a Balsamic Vinegar is, as the name said, a Vinegar and, as such, the acidity is a value, not a defect. Maintain the right acidity in a product of long aging becomes a virtue when it comes to combine a good structure of perfumes to an adequate contents of sugars. Therefore, adding industrial sugars or concentrated grape syrup to sweeten the precious blend can been a “destroyer” of the authentic savor of the Balsamic Vinegar. This is what append to glazes.

Glazes (and creams) are products derived from Balsamic Vinegar or, rather, products made from balsamic vinegar, mixed with other ingredients such as starches, flours and sugars. Thus, it has no value compared (even by price) to a real balsamic vinegar.

Even if similar in color, Balsamic Vinegar and glazes taste totally different. Likewise also the consistency is really different: Balsamic vinegar is obtained only from the slow and progressive acetification of cooked must, whereas glazes are the result of simmering the Balsamic Vinegar and, by adding to this, flour, sugar and glucose, which serves to give shine to the cream. In fact, if we carefully read the ingredients of a glaze, or cream, we will realize that it is a very expensive product in comparison to its real value.

Instead of dressing your salads or enhance the taste of your dishes, for which you can verify that Balsamic Vinegar is the best, glazes can rather be used for decorating plates. As a confirm, in Modena, earth of Balsamic Vinegar original, finding a glaze on the table is very unusual.

A original Balsamic Vinegar is not, and it has never been, a product of few euro and the denomination “black gold” should suggest us something.

L-Originale Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena: www.l-originale.com

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