How to make artisan balsamic

1. The grapes

To obtain the very best artisanal Balsamic, it is absolutely essential to have grapes from vines of the highest Italian quality.

2. Stomping

Immediately after stomping the grapes, the must obtained is left to rest, allowing the coarse parts to settle to the bottom.

3. Must cooking

At this point we proceed to cook the must, a process that must be started before the alcoholic fermentation begins After filling the boiler with the decanted must and igniting the fire, the must is cooked slowly for sixteen to eighteen hours.

4. Fermentation process

The cooked must is then passed into a wooden tun where it is cooled and decanted. Here the first alcoholic fermentation process begins, followed by acetic oxidation with the aid of the addition of acetobacteria (aged wine vinegar).

5. Long ageing process

In the next phase it is transferred to oak casks starting at a capacity of 225 liters. Then it is decanted down to various sized barrels and then the final decantation, into barrels of 50 liters. During this long ageing process the Balsamic obtains its different shadings, flavors and consistencies, that come from the aromas of the different woods according to the age old Emilian traditions.