Shake it Up To a chemist, it’s acetic acid that can be made on an industrial scale. To a chef, it’s an age old classic ingredient that can be fermented from wine, beer or cider and made in small batches by artisan brewers or by leading commercial producers. We’re talking about vinegar, a stalwart of every kitchen and dining table for centuries. Here’s Take Stock’s definitive guide to this amazing condiment.
“
What is vinegar made from?
wine vinegar, apples for cider vinegar,
The word vinegar comes from the French
stage involves converting the fermented
vin (wine) and aigre (sour). But it’s not
alcohol to acetic acid using a specific
just grapes that form the basic ingredient
type of bacteria.
of vinegars. Indeed, vinegar can be made from any fruit, or any produce
Popular types of vinegar
containing sugar - so the list includes cane sugar, coconut, dates, rice, honey
Malt - made by malting barley, which
and even wood pulp. Vinegar is the result
turns the starch in the grain into maltose.
of a 2-stage fermentation process. The
Ale is then brewed from the maltose and
first stage involves the fermentation of
converted to vinegar using specialised
sugar to alcohol using yeast, rather like
bacteria. Malt vinegar is typically light
making beer or wine. The sugar has to
brown in colour but malt extract is added
come from a natural source; grapes for
to give a darker colour.
Consumers care more than ever about the quality and provenance of the food they eat and equally want condiment brands they know and trust.
“
takestockmagazine.com
and barley for malt vinegar. The second
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