On Wed 23 Feb 2005 09:06:55a, Vilco wrote in rec.food.cooking:

> Mi e' parso che Wayne Boatwright abbia scritto:
>
>> The label reads "Modenaceti Balsamic Vinegar of Modena,
>> Product of Italy, Produced and Bottled in Modena".
>>
>> Anyone out there familiar with this particular vinegar?
>> Its characteristics, quality, taste, etc.?
>
> All what the others told you is true, but they forgot one thing:
> the difference between "aceto balsamico" and "aceto balsamico
> TRADIZIONALE".
> It can come from two cities, Modena and Reggio Emilia (where I
> live), the two towns between Bologna and Parma.
> Without the "tradizionale" word, it is a good dressing with some
> rare good products. With the word "tradizionale" it all changes:
> it must be bottled only by the balsamic vinegar consortium of the
> town (Modena or Reggio Emilia) who also labels it with a colored
> mark which indicates its age and quality, or better: a mix of the
> two.
> For tradizionale balsamic vinegar of Reggio Emilia, the three
> labelings are "aragosta" (lobster), "silver" and "gold". The
> first needs an average ageing of around 12 years, the second
> around 20-25 and the latter more than 30 years. I say average
> since the ageing method is the "solera", same as for Porto and
> Jerez, where every year the liquid passes from a barrel to
> another. The age is anyway only a minimum age, for many reasons.
> One is that a producer maybe unsatisfied with the rating the
> consortium gave to his product, so he can decide either to bottle
> it now, with that rating, or wait more years to get a better
> rating. Many "silver" labeled tradizionale are older than 30
> years, as many "gold" ones are over 45 years.
> The differences between "aceto balsamico" and "aceto balsamico
> tradizionale" are usually BIG, both in quality and price: a
> bottle of an average brand here in the production area can cost
> around 4 euros if not tradizionale, and from 30 euros up if
> tradizionale "aragosta". For a "gold" of an average producer, you
> spend around 100 euros. I don't remember the size of the bottle
> but for "aceto balsamico tradizionale di Reggio Emilia" it is
> standard, defined by the consortium.
> Here are some more infos (also in english)
> http://www.acetobalsamicotradizionale.it/
> HTH

Vilco,

Thank you for all the fascinating information. It is quite an education
for me! I will have to look at my label again to make a further
determination as to which I have.

Wayne