Microbial Culture Collection for Balsamic Vinegar Production: Facts and Fiction

1. Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia Unimore Microbial Culture Collection Facts and Fiction, Science and Technology: the Balsamic Vinegar Case Study

2. Facts

3. Vinegar production is regulated by an extensive set of statutes and vinegar definition changes from a country to other

4. FAO/WHO defines vinegar as any liquid, fit for human consumption, produced exclusively from suitable products containing starch and/or sugars by the process of double fermentation, first alcoholic and then acetous. The residual ethanol content must be less than 0.5% in wine vinegar and less than 1% in other vinegars, respectively. (Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme).

5. European countries have regional standards for vinegar produced or sold in the area. EU established a threshold both for acidity and ethanol content, respectively a minimum of 5% (w/v) acidity and a maximum of 0.5% (v/v) ethanol. Wine vinegar is obtained exclusively by acetous fermentation of wine and has at least 6% acidity (w/v) and 1.5% (v/v) of ethanol (Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999).

8. Vinegar made of X Vinegar flavored with X

9. Fruits • Seeds • Vegetables • Milk and Honey • Spirit (Alcohol) • Piroligneus

14. Patulin

15. Raw Material Grouping • Acid and easy fermentable: pH below 3.5 and glucose, fructose and sucrose as main constituent, e.g. berry grape, apple, plums, etc. • Moderate acid and easy fermentable: pH in between 3.5 to 4.5, e.g. figs, dates • Low acid and easy fermentable: pH higher than 4.5 e.g. palm sap • Non-fermentable: hydrolysis is required before fermentation. e.g. seeds and banana

16. Raw Material Grouping • Acid and easy fermentable: pH below 3.5 and glucose, fructose and sucrose as main constituent, e.g. berry grape, apple, plums, etc.

17. Raw Material Grouping • Moderate acid and easy fermentable: pH in between 3.5 to 4.5, e.g. figs, dates

18. Raw Material Grouping • Low acid and easy fermentable: pH higher than 4.5 e.g. palm sap

19. Raw Material Grouping • Non-fermentable: hydrolysis is required before fermentation. e.g. seeds and banana

20. Western stories and tales about vinegar

21. Mark Antony was impressed by the opulence of the court of Cleopatra.

22. Cleopatra (69-30 BC) to show haw much she wasn’t affected by richness, she dissolved a big pearl into vinegar and drunk it.

23. Hannibal (247 -181 BC), Punic Carthaginian military commander,

24. Facts on balsamic vinegars

28. As discriminating balsamic

30. Legend: • Z= sugars concentration g/kg, assay by Fehling • °Bx = Brixs, soluble solids assay by refractometer • Z = numeric difference between Z and °Bx • TA = titratable acidity • FA = fixed acidity (Titratable acidity – Acetic acid) • BV, BC, ABM, TBV = respectively: Balsamic Vinegar, • Balsamic Condiment, Modena Balsamic Vinegar; • Traditional Balsamic Vinegar.:

31. The age of Traditional Balsamic Vinegar

32. Residence time • Aging indicators

39. Aging indicators

49. I balsamici sono una storia recente?

50. Dall'Aquila estense al tricolore. Donne, uomini e aceto nel ducato tra il 1796 al 1860 Ugo Rangone, Giovanna Giacobazzi Technograph