Wine’s Other Self

Wine’s “other self” is vinegar. One of the two best vinegars in the world is Italy’s traditional balsamic vinegar (the other is Spain’s solera-aged Sherry vinegar). Needless to say, the inexpensive “balsamic vinegar” you find in a supermarket is decidedly not great. It’s just ordinary red wine vinegar that’s been sweetened and colored with caramel. Real balsamic vinegar is made only in Emilia-Romagna, just north of Tuscany, around the towns of Modena and Reggio. It’s labeled aceto balsamico tradizionale di Modena or di Reggio, and the Italian government grants it a DOP, Denomination of Protected Origin, equivalent to DOC status for wines. Price is always a tip-off: A small 3-ounce vial of balsamico tradizionale can be $100 or more. For many Italians, the most godly of all culinary combinations is a chunk of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese moistened with a few drops of an especially lush, old, traditional balsamic vinegar.

Cognac and Armagnac have essentially the same flavor.

Answer: False.

Cognac and Armagnac are both brandies made in their respective villages in the southwest of France. Both are made mainly from ugni blanc grapes, and both are distilled to create the brandies. There are however differences in the way the two brandies taste. Cognac tends to be more floral, grapey and fragrant with a good bite of alcohol in the finish. Armagnacs are fuller bodied with more pruney, dried fruit character.

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Age (in years) of the oldest grapevine in Great Britain. While this doesn’t make it the oldest in the world, a two-and-a-half century-old Vitis vinifera vine that still dependably yields grapes is not exactly what… Continue reading

Wine’s Other Self

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