My grandmother always made wine, and sometimes vinegar. I have not made
either and no longer have family alive of the generations that could
advise me from their experience. My new cookbook (Giulliano Bugialli's
"Foods of Naples and Campania") gives simple instructions for the making
of vinegar using bread as the mother and a dry red wine. It sounds worth
a try and certainly couldn't be easier.
I have an opened bottle of Walasiyi Wine Country Blood Mountain Red from
Georgia that was a tad "rich" for my liking as a table wine. Someone
likened it to port, if that helps describe it?
Do you think this would be an appropriate wine to give vinegar making a
shot with? Of course if I'm not going to drink it I have little to
lose, but I'd use it to cook with otherwise.

Goomba38 wrote:
> My grandmother always made wine, and sometimes vinegar. I have not made
> either and no longer have family alive of the generations that could
> advise me from their experience. My new cookbook (Giulliano Bugialli's
> "Foods of Naples and Campania") gives simple instructions for the making
> of vinegar using bread as the mother and a dry red wine. It sounds worth
> a try and certainly couldn't be easier.
> I have an opened bottle of Walasiyi Wine Country Blood Mountain Red from
> Georgia that was a tad "rich" for my liking as a table wine. Someone
> likened it to port, if that helps describe it?
> Do you think this would be an appropriate wine to give vinegar making a
> shot with? Of course if I'm not going to drink it I have little to
> lose, but I'd use it to cook with otherwise.

Why not, most wines will make a vinegar if done properly. The taste of
the vinegar will depend upon the wine of course but take a shot anyway.

George, who makes both wine and vinegar but not often

Goomba38 wrote:

> Do you think this would be an appropriate wine to give vinegar making a
> shot with?

Sure... any wine will make vinegar eventually. I'm not familiar with
bread as a mother though. What I'd do is get some from a brew shop if I
wasn't patient enough to simply wait a few weeks for it to develop.

It's my understanding that those who make wine vinegar do so on a
continuous basis--that is, they just draw off a pint or so of what they
need, boil and filter it, but they're constantly replenishing the
barrel/cask with leftovers from this and that.

B/

Brian Mailman wrote:

> It's my understanding that those who make wine vinegar do so on a
> continuous basis--that is, they just draw off a pint or so of what they
> need, boil and filter it, but they're constantly replenishing the
> barrel/cask with leftovers from this and that.
>
> B/

Thank you for your reply.
Here is the recipe: Aceto di vino, from Giulliano Bugialli's "Foods of
Naples and Campania"

2 slices white bread, crusts removed
4 cups dry red wine

Put the bread in a glass jar, then pour the wine over it. Place a piece
of cheesecloth over the top of the jar and set the jar aside in a
cabinet or on a countertop away from direct sunlight.

Let the jar rest for about 25 days. in this period of time the bread
will turn very dark in color and become almost gelatinous. This is the
so called mother of the wine vinegar. Carefully drain and filter the
wine that has become vinegar into a bowl., then pour into a bottle. The
vinegar is now ready to be used.

You can add more wine to the jar containing the mother of the vinegar.
This time the process of changing the wine into vinegar will be much
faster, about 1 week.

In article >, goomba38
@comcast.net says...
> Brian Mailman wrote:
>
> > It's my understanding that those who make wine vinegar do so on a
> > continuous basis--that is, they just draw off a pint or so of what they
> > need, boil and filter it, but they're constantly replenishing the
> > barrel/cask with leftovers from this and that.
> >
> > B/
>
> Thank you for your reply.
> Here is the recipe: Aceto di vino, from Giulliano Bugialli's "Foods of
> Naples and Campania"
>
> 2 slices white bread, crusts removed
> 4 cups dry red wine
>
> Put the bread in a glass jar, then pour the wine over it. Place a piece
> of cheesecloth over the top of the jar and set the jar aside in a
> cabinet or on a countertop away from direct sunlight.
>
> Let the jar rest for about 25 days. in this period of time the bread
> will turn very dark in color and become almost gelatinous. This is the
> so called mother of the wine vinegar. Carefully drain and filter the
> wine that has become vinegar into a bowl., then pour into a bottle. The
> vinegar is now ready to be used.
>
> You can add more wine to the jar containing the mother of the vinegar.
> This time the process of changing the wine into vinegar will be much
> faster, about 1 week.
>
My guess is that Sr. Bugialli's procedure is predicated on local bread
and local wine, both probably relatively preservative-free compared to
what gets widely distributed here in the U.S.

Bob

In article >, yetanotherBob wrote:

> My guess is that Sr. Bugialli's procedure is predicated on local bread
> and local wine, both probably relatively preservative-free compared to
> what gets widely distributed here in the U.S.

Yeah, you probably don't want to use a couple of pieces of Wonderbread..
(8-> Or you may want to change the 25 days to 25 weeks..

Rick F. wrote:

> In article >, yetanotherBob wrote:
>
>> My guess is that Sr. Bugialli's procedure is predicated on local bread
>> and local wine, both probably relatively preservative-free compared to
>> what gets widely distributed here in the U.S.
>
> Yeah, you probably don't want to use a couple of pieces of Wonderbread..
> (8-> Or you may want to change the 25 days to 25 weeks..

If that's the case, he doesn't need bread at all, just leave the wine
open to the air and it'll catch a mother on its own.

B/

"Rick F." > wrote in message
...
> In article >, yetanotherBob
> wrote:
>
>> My guess is that Sr. Bugialli's procedure is predicated on local bread
>> and local wine, both probably relatively preservative-free compared to
>> what gets widely distributed here in the U.S.
>
> Yeah, you probably don't want to use a couple of pieces of Wonderbread..
> (8-> Or you may want to change the 25 days to 25 weeks..

I saw someone do it on TV with dried pasta - she put a hand full of
spaghetti noodles in a jar with red wine and claimed it would make vinegar
in a few months...I was gullible enough to try it....ended up with wine
scented sludge.....mmmmmm.......not

Kathi

Rick F. wrote:
> In article >, yetanotherBob wrote:
>
>> My guess is that Sr. Bugialli's procedure is predicated on local bread
>> and local wine, both probably relatively preservative-free compared to
>> what gets widely distributed here in the U.S.
>
> Yeah, you probably don't want to use a couple of pieces of Wonderbread..
> (8-> Or you may want to change the 25 days to 25 weeks..

LOL.. I was actually thinking a local artesan bread...?

On 4/1/07 10:21 AM, in article ,
"Goomba38" > wrote:

> Brian Mailman wrote:
>
>> It's my understanding that those who make wine vinegar do so on a
>> continuous basis--that is, they just draw off a pint or so of what they
>> need, boil and filter it, but they're constantly replenishing the
>> barrel/cask with leftovers from this and that.
>>
>> B/
>
> Thank you for your reply.
> Here is the recipe: Aceto di vino, from Giulliano Bugialli's "Foods of
> Naples and Campania"
>
> 2 slices white bread, crusts removed
> 4 cups dry red wine
>
> Put the bread in a glass jar, then pour the wine over it. Place a piece
> of cheesecloth over the top of the jar and set the jar aside in a
> cabinet or on a countertop away from direct sunlight.
>
> Let the jar rest for about 25 days. in this period of time the bread
> will turn very dark in color and become almost gelatinous. This is the
> so called mother of the wine vinegar. Carefully drain and filter the
> wine that has become vinegar into a bowl., then pour into a bottle. The
> vinegar is now ready to be used.
>
> You can add more wine to the jar containing the mother of the vinegar.
> This time the process of changing the wine into vinegar will be much
> faster, about 1 week.
I think that you will need to use sour dough bread if it is available near
you, but thr recipe sounds great and I am going to try it.

Peter Watson
Melbourne Australia

Peter Watson wrote:

> On 4/1/07 10:21 AM, in article ,
> "Goomba38" > wrote:
>
>>
>>Thank you for your reply.
>>Here is the recipe: Aceto di vino, from Giulliano Bugialli's "Foods of
>>Naples and Campania"
>>
>>2 slices white bread, crusts removed
>>4 cups dry red wine
>>
>>Put the bread in a glass jar, then pour the wine over it. Place a piece
>>of cheesecloth over the top of the jar and set the jar aside in a
>>cabinet or on a countertop away from direct sunlight.
>>
>>Let the jar rest for about 25 days. in this period of time the bread
>>will turn very dark in color and become almost gelatinous. This is the
>>so called mother of the wine vinegar. Carefully drain and filter the
>>wine that has become vinegar into a bowl., then pour into a bottle. The
>>vinegar is now ready to be used.
>>
>>You can add more wine to the jar containing the mother of the vinegar.
>>This time the process of changing the wine into vinegar will be much
>>faster, about 1 week.
>
> I think that you will need to use sour dough bread if it is available near
> you, but thr recipe sounds great and I am going to try it.

You don't need to use sourdough, or bread made with
any specific yeast. There's no live cultures left in
bread (as there is in, for example, yoghurt). It all
dies off during baking.

--
Reg

My 2 cents worth. Acetobacter is the critter that is responsible for
changing the alcohol to vinegar, and when making wine this is the
critter you want to avoid at all costs.

Surest way to make good vinegar is to buy a culture (mother) from
reputable vendor (homebrew supply stores carry it) or borrow a few
ounces from someone who has a culture going. The "Mother" is the most
disgusting looking thing you would ever see in your life, and it looks
obscene to say the least. There are different strains of
"acetobacter" that produce various flavors. I like Malt vinegar so
purchase a malt vinegar mother and use stale beer instead of wine.

You can make your own "mother" by putting single layer of very coarse
cheesecloth or screening over a jug of wine, and set it out on the
porch. Fruitflies, flies, other flying critters will come to try to
get into the bottle, but will be stopped by the screen. However, the
little "acetobacter" fall into the wine and start growing, as they
naturally populate the outside of the fruitfly and flies, and other
bugs.

The problem with this method is that although it works all the time,
you never know exactly which strainof the little bacterium or whatever
you are starting, although most always it will turn out OK. For a
particular flavor get a "mother" from a company specializing in
vinegars.

Commercial vinegar is made from Crude Oil, I would NEVER NEVER NEVER
drink vinegar made in a refinery (distilled white vinegar and most
commercial vinegars, flavored with laboratory chemicals).

Maybe someone from England can jump in here with more explicit
instructions, as they have some excellent Malt vinegars over there and
I have never been able to even come close to those with my
store-bought mothers. (a "Mother" would make the basis of a good
science fiction movie, as if you have ever seen one they are the stuff
mightmares are made of).

On a related subject,, I used to make sherry the way they do in
Europe, in an Estuffa (heated cabinet), and the yeast for this stuff
makes a "mother" also, and it makes a hard, crusty "mother" that is
just as obscene looking. I can't find the yeast anymore since Wine
Art went out of business many years ago (sherry flor yeast). The
homemade sherry was better than anything you could buy, could be made
out of just about anything (I used oranges), but it took some time to
enjoy.

Jim




On Sat, 06 Jan 2007 01:45:58 -0800, Reg > wrote:

>Peter Watson wrote:
>
>> On 4/1/07 10:21 AM, in article ,
>> "Goomba38" > wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>Thank you for your reply.
>>>Here is the recipe: Aceto di vino, from Giulliano Bugialli's "Foods of
>>>Naples and Campania"
>>>
>>>2 slices white bread, crusts removed
>>>4 cups dry red wine
>>>
>>>Put the bread in a glass jar, then pour the wine over it. Place a piece
>>>of cheesecloth over the top of the jar and set the jar aside in a
>>>cabinet or on a countertop away from direct sunlight.
>>>
>>>Let the jar rest for about 25 days. in this period of time the bread
>>>will turn very dark in color and become almost gelatinous. This is the
>>>so called mother of the wine vinegar. Carefully drain and filter the
>>>wine that has become vinegar into a bowl., then pour into a bottle. The
>>>vinegar is now ready to be used.
>>>
>>>You can add more wine to the jar containing the mother of the vinegar.
>>>This time the process of changing the wine into vinegar will be much
>>>faster, about 1 week.
>>
>> I think that you will need to use sour dough bread if it is available near
>> you, but thr recipe sounds great and I am going to try it.
>
>You don't need to use sourdough, or bread made with
>any specific yeast. There's no live cultures left in
>bread (as there is in, for example, yoghurt). It all
>dies off during baking.

Goomba38 wrote:
> My grandmother always made wine, and sometimes vinegar. I have not made
> either and no longer have family alive of the generations that could
> advise me from their experience. My new cookbook (Giulliano Bugialli's
> "Foods of Naples and Campania") gives simple instructions for the making
> of vinegar using bread as the mother and a dry red wine. It sounds worth
> a try and certainly couldn't be easier.
> I have an opened bottle of Walasiyi Wine Country Blood Mountain Red from
> Georgia that was a tad "rich" for my liking as a table wine. Someone
> likened it to port, if that helps describe it?
> Do you think this would be an appropriate wine to give vinegar making a
> shot with? Of course if I'm not going to drink it I have little to
> lose, but I'd use it to cook with otherwise.


Buy some organic, unpasteurized vinegar and add a couple of tablespoons
to the wine. That should get the process started.

Rusty