Not all vinegar products are awarded the Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena P.D.O. classification. Producers who wish to obtain it must comply with a stringent product specification and submit the result of their work to a Commission of Expert Tasters. Although this could appear to be a lengthy and laborious bureaucratic process, for us it is the expression of respect for an ancient tradition. Traditional Balsamic Vinegar. The traditional sort is only produced in the province of Modena because it is only here that that the ideal conditions for creating and ageing an impeccable vinegar are to be found.
Harsh winters and hot, humid summers provide the grapes with the right concentration of sugars and acidity. After the harvest and once the must has been cooked, the product is aged in wooden barrels of varying sizes. Oak, chestnut, mulberry, juniper, cherry and ash, each with different fragrances and properties that enrich its intense flavour. The vinegar must be transferred from cask to cask over a period of at least 12 years before it becomes Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena. And at least 25 years before it can be called “Extravecchio”.
