[flyfish]

This post by Russ Parsons got me thinking about vinegar. I grew up in a plain white vinegar family. We had cider vinegar in the house but only for making pickled beets.

Recently I checked my cupboard and these are the vinegars I found:

Regular white
Pickling (higher acidity)
Cider
Generic red wine
Chianti
Cabernet
Sherry
Generic white wine
Champagne
Tarragon
Regular Malt
Barley wine malt
Seasoned rice
Utility balsamic
Better balsamic
White balsamic

I blame you people. Except for the champagne vinegar; that's Cathy's fault alone

So what am I missing?

[The Scream]

Quote

So what am I missing?

Date vinegar

[The Scream]

Pineapple vinegar

[flyfish]

The Scream, on Jan 16 2007, 08:33 PM, said:

Quote

So what am I missing?

Date vinegar

No thanks, I'm married

Tell me more about this date vinegar of which you speak...

[canadiancook]

IceWine Vinegar
Mirin - which isn't really a vinegar, but a must have anyway.

[flyfish]

canadiancook, on Jan 16 2007, 08:38 PM, said:

IceWine Vinegar
Mirin - which isn't really a vinegar, but a must have anyway.

I have mirin. Haven't tried ice wine vinegar yet.

Oh look, there's a Vinegar Institute.

[Squeat Mungry]

There are a couple I buy from Lulu Petite at the Ferry Plaza that I'm quite fond of. One is a "fig and meyer lemon balsamic", and the other is a "currant balsamic". They also have a "cherry balsamic" that I've never tried.

[flyfish]

It sounds like they make balsamic out of everything but... well, balsam

[The Scream]

flyfish, on Jan 17 2007, 01:36 AM, said:

The Scream, on Jan 16 2007, 08:33 PM, said:

Quote

So what am I missing?

Date vinegar

No thanks, I'm married

Tell me more about this date vinegar of which you speak...

Ouch, at the joke.

I wasn't impressed with the brand I tried. It has a dark amber color. Highly acidic, sharp and shudder inducing tangy.

[Russ Parsons]

i have to say that i find almost all commercial wine vinegars to be undrinkable--no matter the variety. i know, that sounds funny, but a good wine vinegar should be very pleasant if cut with water. all of hte ones i've bought have been harsh and chemically. really awful. so several years ago i started making my own. couldn't be easier--i've got a pair of glass jugs on my counter. in one of them i make the raw vinegar--combine cheap wine and bottle dregs ($2 chuck is great!) with some mother of vinegar from an unpasteurized vinegar bottle. After about 6 weeks, when that begins to be ... vinegary, i pour off half into the second jug, which is actually a sun-tea jug (with a spigot) and refill. the vinegar finishes in the sun-tea jug and i decant it into a wine bottle. only fill about 2/3 of the way, you'll want to add some water to reduce the acidity. works like a charm and the fruit of the wine really comes through.

[The Scream]

Flyfish, there's also Chinese black vinegar.

[foodie52]

Cuisine Perel puts out a few good ones. I like their blood orange vinegar.

This "Petite Lulu" - are they Restaurant Lulu?

And don't forget a good Saba. Which is very sippable.

[Squeat Mungry]

foodie52, on Jan 16 2007, 07:23 PM, said:

This "Petite Lulu" - are they Restaurant Lulu?

Yes, they are an "outpost" of sorts of the original restaurant that is permanently housed in the Ferry Building. Also, I bungled the name: it's "Lulu Petite". See here.

[Rose]

Russ Parsons, on Jan 16 2007, 09:35 PM, said:

i have to say that i find almost all commercial wine vinegars to be undrinkable--no matter the variety. i know, that sounds funny, but a good wine vinegar should be very pleasant if cut with water. all of hte ones i've bought have been harsh and chemically. really awful. so several years ago i started making my own. couldn't be easier--i've got a pair of glass jugs on my counter. in one of them i make the raw vinegar--combine cheap wine and bottle dregs ($2 chuck is great!) with some mother of vinegar from an unpasteurized vinegar bottle. After about 6 weeks, when that begins to be ... vinegary, i pour off half into the second jug, which is actually a sun-tea jug (with a spigot) and refill. the vinegar finishes in the sun-tea jug and i decant it into a wine bottle. only fill about 2/3 of the way, you'll want to add some water to reduce the acidity. works like a charm and the fruit of the wine really comes through.

Do you pour off half into the other jug in order to keep a mother for your next round?

[rancho_gordo]

I'm hoping Abra chimes in here.
I HATE to drop names, but the divine Miss Paula Wolfert gifted me with a old French mother (no jokes as we can anticipate them, thank you) and I bought a beautiful ceramic crock to store it and the vinegar. I keep adding wine but I haven't done anything to the vinegar yet. It's in my pantry and the lid is really cheesecloth. I hope I'm doing everything ok and don't overdo it. I can just imagine it's musty treasures!