The smell hits you first the minute you open the door to the villa. A heady mix of sweet and tangy from wooden barrels that have been aging balsamic vinegar for decades in the region of Emilia Romagna. I visited two traditional balsamic vinegar producers- Acetaia Malpighi and Acetaia Giusti – to learn about the slow and patient process of making and aging the vinegar which are made from grapes. Round bottles denote that they were produced in Modena. Bottles with a yellow cap are at least 12 years old while those with golden caps are at least 25 years old.
While I’m exploring the traditions and slow food in Emilia Romagna through BlogVille, I’ll be sharing some quick postcards and snippets to bring you along with me.
I bet that was very interesting learning about the aging balsamic vinegar process?
It’s quite fascinating how they do it in the wooden barrels and then transferring them from barrel to barrel. I will share more details in a future post as I edit the entire set.