Finding Italy’s Real ‘Black Gold’: Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena

“When in Modena, if you ask someone what is the best vinegar ever, the answer is easy: ‘Mine.'” Cristina Sereni laughs. Sereni was a master of traditional balsamic vinegar tasting and is currently the Museum of Traditional Balsamic Vinegar’s director.

Even if you’re not a big fan of balsamic vinegar, there is good news: It may be a blend with wine vinegar. This would make balsamic vinegar a useful condiment and ingredient for cooking. That is the kind of balsamic vinegar I keep in my pantry. It’s used in salads, and in other recipes.

On the other hand, trip through the Food Valley of Emilia-Romagna, I got schooled.

Real Deal

True, traditional balsamic vinegar comes at a dear cost in a 3.3-ounce (100-milliliter) globelike bottle—a holy hand grenade of deliciousness, black gold if there ever were such a thing. You’ll find it in beautiful drops, clearly marked for authenticity and labeled.

Champagne is a great example of how you cannot put it down. “balsamic vinegar of Modena” You should not use a vinegar from a region other than its own. But there are two distinctions for Modena: Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI (Protected Geographical Indication—IGP on an Italian label) and Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PDO (Protected Designation of Origin—or DOP). The former allows for blending with wine vinegar, and is more affordable; the latter is made strictly with grape must (crushed grapes with skins, stems, and all), aged at least 12 years, and even judged for quality.

However, the traditions are much older than labels and have been preserved by home-producers for generations.

Home Brew

Sereni takes me on a tour of the museum. It is the headquarters for the consortium which judges the DOP Traditional Balsamic Vinegar Modena. However, Sereni is telling me stories about vinegars traditional that aren’t available in stores even within Italy.

She shows me five barrels, each decreasing in size. This is an example of a “battery,” She tells me. “Tradition says that any time a baby girl is born, we should start a new set. Today we don’t mind the gender, but in the past, it was just for baby girls.”

This begins with grape harvest in the autumn. Once the grapes have been harvested, they are then reduced to a minimum of a third to increase sugar levels. Once the temperature reaches 60 degrees, the liquid can be put into the biggest barrel. This is how natural fermentation starts, which in just a few weeks will lead to vinegar. The Mother barrel is named after the mother, while families also give these female names. Sereni had two grandmothers, a Rosaria (her grandmother) and Lucia (her mother).

A portion of the Mother barrel is moved to the next barrel. The new batch is then blended into the Mother. This cycle continues each year and, after many years, the last barrel is producing small amounts of blended old vines.