Balsamic Vinegar
Flavour Profile
Deep, complex and syrupy. It balances intense sweetness with a sharp, vinegary bite. You will pick up notes of oak, cherry, and dried fruits like figs or raisins.
Health Benefits
Balsamic vinegar has acetic acid, which can help with digestion. You'll also get a bit of manganese, handy for turning food into energy and keeping bones in order.
Buying Tips
Look for 'Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale' if you want the thick, syrupy stuff aged for over 12 years. It will be expensive and come in a specific 100ml bulbous bottle.
For everyday cooking, look for 'Balsamic Vinegar of Modena (IGP)'. Avoid bottles where 'caramel colour' or 'thickening agents' are high up on the ingredient list. You want grape must and wine vinegar, nothing else.
Storage
Keep it in a cool, dark cupboard away from the stove. It won't go off because of the high acidity, but heat and direct sunlight will dull those complex flavours over time. Check the cap for sugar buildup; it can glue itself shut if you don't keep the rim clean.
Cooking Uses
Use cheaper IGP balsamic for deglazing pans, making salad dressings, or reducing into a glaze.
Use the expensive traditional stuff as a finishing touch. Drizzle it over parmesan cheese, fresh strawberries, or high-quality vanilla bean gelato. It is a condiment, not a cooking liquid.
Forkin Food Theory
Balsamic vinegar isn't actually a wine vinegar. Most vinegars are made from finished wine, but balsamic starts with 'must' — fresh-pressed grape juice.
It is cooked down to a concentrate before it ever has a chance to ferment into wine.
This is why balsamic has a natural sweetness and body that other vinegars can't match. It's essentially a sour fruit syrup that has been aged in a series of different wooden barrels.
Wild & Wonderful
Cheap supermarket balsamic is wine vinegar with caramel colouring and sugar added. The real thing — Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena DOP — is aged in wood for a minimum of 12 years, often 25, and costs more per drop than good whisky.
There's a middle ground: Aceto Balsamico di Modena IGP. Look for grape must (mosto) listed first, not wine vinegar. The longer the ageing, the thicker and sweeter.
Don't cook with the expensive stuff. Drizzle it raw on strawberries, parmesan, ice cream, or steak after cooking. Heat kills the complexity you paid for.
The cheap stuff is fine for marinades and reductions where you'd cook the complexity off anyway.