GUSTI Blog

Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale - 100 Years with a Twist of Juniper!

Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale of Modena is certified by the Consortium. They taste the precious liquid and attest that it has the qualities of a (at least) 12 year old or 25 year old balsamico tradizionale. The consorzio only certifies these 2. The first is Ivory Label, the second is Gold Label.

Several "acetaie" (vinegars families/establishments), including our Ca Dal Non, promote their vinegars as much older than the 25 years assigned by the consortium.  They promote their vinegars as 50 years old, 100 years old, etc. It doesn't mean that the liquid is exactly 50 years old or 100 yrs old or that it was kept in the little bottles for 100 years! The Consortium was not even born 100 years ago!!!

It means that the liquid comes from batteries of barrels that are at least 50 yrs old or 100 yrs old. Since only a little liquid is taken from the last [smallest] barrel every year (remember that there are at least three barrels - descending in size - and the aceto balsamico tradizionale is taken from the last smaller barrel only - never the total amount, only a small part of it), you can say that some of the liquid originates from more than 100 year ago. It's a process that started more than 100 years before.

The battery of barrels of our extra extra gold Demetria is older than 100 years, since it was started by Mariangela's great grandfather, whose name was Alfonso. The production of these extra extra gold balsamico tradizionale is very limited - only a very few units each year. These old barrels give a much different depth and flavor to the vinegar.

Our Demetria, aceto balsamico tradizionale >100 yrs, is aged in a battery of 7 barrels which are older than 100 years. An 8th finishing barrell was added many years ago sorry, memory is lost there). The wood of this barrel is wild juniper which is a very rare tree that has not been found for many years. Cutting it in the mountains has been forbidden by law. The wild juniper wood gives the vinegar a very specific herbaious/resin taste and aperfect balance with the sour and sweet notes of the traditional balsamico. The end result will stupefy anybody who tastes it.

Pasta Senatore Cappelli by Latini on National Italian Television

This beautiful woman is Carla Latini who, together with her husband Carlo, makes an extraordinary artisanal pasta, Latini Pasta, in the Marche region.

She was recently interviewed by Uno Mattina, a very popular program on national Italian TV. This is huge! It's like saying that she was on for 10 minutes with Matt Lauer, on the Today Show! I would have passed out. Well, she was WONDERFUL, a natural, she makes you believe she has been doing this all her life. Wrong, all her life she has been making pasta and she knows everything about good artisanal pasta making!!!

You can listen to Carla's performance, here. It might be a way to improve your Italian! In the interview, Carla describes the characteristics of an artisanal pasta, including the best durum wheats and the slow drying process. Carla says you know you're cooking an artisanal pasta because right from the boiling pot, you smell a wonderful aroma of freshly baked bread (try to smell the water with an industrial pasta!).

She says that cooking time for pasta on the boxes is only an indication; cooking time should be a question of sentiment, of individual preference. Start tasting the pasta one minute before "official cooking time" and keep checking it, often; when you think it is very al dente according to your sentiment, turn off the fire, add the sauce and the heat of the pot will keep cooking the pasta for a few more seconds.

 

Carla talks about Senatore Cappelli, a heirloom wheat that was reintroduced by her husband, the agronomist in the family, in the '60s. Senatore Cappelli has a long sheaf and cannot be worked with modern equipment used by industrial agri-business producers.  That's why it was disappearing. Now it is back, look at the beautiful sheaf that Carla is holding, smell the aroma, try the difference of Pasta Senatore Cappelli, here.