— Lilly Boulianne

You know the the best right to I guess some people would say balsamic vinegars are going to be the ones that are coming from Modena in Italy and in that part of the country, there are a couple of different designations for that highest rated balsamic vinegar. And it's you know, it's based on age as well as organoleptic qualities those taste in Aroma qualities, but you know, those those balsamic vinegars also command a very high price. and those balsamic vinegars While delicious, you know in their own, right and while they enhance certain foods and certain contexts very well. They're not in all purpose. Balsamic vinegar, okay, you know if you want something that's got more acidity and maybe even a lower price point something that's more accessible on a daily basis. Then you know you would look at what some people would consider lower quality balsamic vinegars. And so when it comes to balsamic vinegars, there are these there's a traditional method right of Aging the vinegar in barrels or casks over some period of time and it varies depending on the quality that you producing and then there's a very different category of balsamic vinegar, which is really it's not made by the traditional method at all. It's this shortcut method where colors might be added to the the base vinegar. There may be some Aging for varying periods of time not like it would compare to the traditional methods, but there could be some months. Of Aging that go into these other products in this category and these go by a separate ranking system of grape leaves and I think it's one through four grape leaves and for being in arguably better quality product having seen some some aging also maybe having been made with grape must, you know, and other components and actually go into the the traditional method of making balsamic vinegar, but these are going to be available at a much lower price point now, I will also add that in my experience in testing some of these branded products in this less expensive. category of balsamic vinegar is that Simply looking at the leaf rating is not so reliable. In other words, the the style of vinegar can be quite different in terms of its sweetness or acidity or sort of its richness on the palate. So again, you would need to do some testing for example, pick up two or three or four bottles of four leaf balsamic vinegar and then try them out and see how you like them. Maybe you choose one that you prefer for all of your cooking or maybe there's a couple of them that you use for different types of preparations different applications. Okay, and so give this a try and see what you come up with. Okay, all this comes down to some personal testing based upon your preferences and your situation. All right.