SIMPLE ANCIENT PROCEDURES
The production follows simple and precise procedures according to the Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena regulations, which must be carried accurately, in the correct sequence, choosing the most suitable time and place. Personal touches however, do exist, and these are passed down, most often by word-of-mouth, from generation to generation.
The procedure necessary in order to obtain Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena consists in three basic stages:
THE HARVESTING OF THE GRAPES
In order to obtain the Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena, the grapes harvested must be those “used for the wine traditionally cultivated in the province of Modena”, and in particular, from Lambrusco and Trebbiano grapes.
THE PRESSING OF THE GRAPES AND THE COOKING OF THE GRAPE MUST
The cooking of the must should occur almost simultaneously as the pressing. The must is cooked for several hours over a “direct flame and in an open vessel” until it reaches a concentration averaging around 50%.
THE AGING
Aging takes place in a series of small barrels made of different kinds of woods and having decreasing volume, usually kept in the attic of the house. Every year, using a special method of decanting, the smallest cask of the sequence provides a few liters of the products, while the reduction due to concentration is compensated for by the addition of cooked grape-must to the largest cask. Only after at least 15 or 25 years the maturing does the product reach that surprising balance of aromas and flavor that allows it to bear the title of “Protected Origin Denomination” (D.O.P.).
TYPICAL BATTERIA for Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of MODENA D.O.P.
TRANSFER and REINFORCEMENTS OF A TYPICAL BATTERIA of MODENA
The vinegar from Modena is placed in the attic of the house. Requires large summer heat to ripen and concentrate the precious “balsamic”.
