Vinegar is an aqueous solution of acetic acid and trace compounds that may include flavorings. Vinegar typically contains from 5% to 18% acetic acid by volume. Usually, the acetic acid is produced by a double fermentation, converting simple sugars to ethanol using yeast and ethanol to acetic acid using acetic acid bacteria. Many types of vinegar are made, depending on source materials. The product is now mainly used in the culinary arts as a flavorful, acidic cooking ingredient or in pickling. Various types are used as condiments or garnishes, including balsamic vinegar and malt vinegar.
Mortadella is a large Italian sausage or luncheon meat made of finely hashed or ground cured pork, which incorporates at least 15% small cubes of pork fat. It is traditionally flavoured with peppercorns, but modern versions can also contain pistachios or, less commonly, myrtle berries. The sausage is then cooked.
Modena is a city and comune (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy.
Amarone della Valpolicella, usually known as Amarone, is an Italian DOCG denomination of typically rich dry red wine made from the partially dried grapes of the Corvina, Rondinella (5–30%) and other approved red grape varieties.
Three European Union schemes of geographical indications and traditional specialties, known as protected designation of origin (PDO), protected geographical indication (PGI), and traditional speciality guaranteed (TSG), promote and protect names of agricultural products and foodstuffs, wines and spirits. Products registered under one of the three schemes may be marked with the logo for that scheme to help identify those products. The schemes are based on the legal framework provided by the EU Regulation No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 November 2012 on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs. This regulation applies within the EU as well as in Northern Ireland. Protection of the registered products is gradually expanded internationally via bilateral agreements between the EU and non-EU countries. It ensures that only products genuinely originating in that region are allowed to be identified as such in commerce. The legislation first came into force in 1992. The purpose of the law is to protect the reputation of the regional foods, promote rural and agricultural activity, help producers obtain a premium price for their authentic products, and eliminate the unfair competition and misleading of consumers by non-genuine products, which may be of inferior quality or of different flavour. Critics argue that many of the names, sought for protection by the EU, have become commonplace in trade and should not be protected.
In Spain, the denominación de origen is part of a regulatory geographical indication system used primarily for foodstuffs such as cheeses, condiments, honey, and meats, among others. In wines, it parallels the hierarchical systems of France (1935) and Italy (1963), although Rioja (1925) and Jerez (1933) preceded the full system. In foods, it performs a similar role, regulation of quality and geographical origin of products from Spain. There are five other designated categories solely for wine and a further three specifically covering food and condiments, all recognised by the European Union (EU). In Catalonia, two further categories – labelled A and Q – cover traditional Catalan artisan food products, but were not recognised by the EU as of 2007. In recent decades, the concept of the denominación de origen has been adopted by other countries, primarily in Latin America. In 2016, the use of the Denominación de Origen (DO) for wines was registered as a European Union Protected Designations of Origin/Denominación de Origen Protegida (PDO/DOP), but the traditional Portuguese term of DO can still be used legally on labels.
Balsamic vinegar is a dark, concentrated, intensely flavoured vinegar originating in Modena, Italy, made wholly or partially from grape must: freshly crushed grape juice with all the skins, seeds and stems.
Bresaola is air-dried, salted beef that has been aged two or three months until it becomes hard and turns a dark red, almost purple colour. It is made from top (inside) round, and it is lean and tender, with a sweet, musty smell. It originated in Valtellina, a valley in the Alps of northern Italy's Lombardy region.
Prosecco is an Italian DOC or DOCG white wine produced in a large area spanning nine provinces in the Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia regions, and named after the village of Prosecco, in the province of Trieste, Italy. It is made from the Prosecco grape, but denomination rules allow up to 15% of the wine to be other permitted varieties. Prosecco is almost always made in sparkling or semi-sparkling style, but a still wine is also permitted. Within the larger designation are two small DOCG areas, Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco in the hills between the comuni (municipalities) of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, and Asolo Prosecco around the nearby comune of Asolo. Prosecco Superiore is always spumante and comes only from these DOCG areas.
Burrata is an Italian cow's milk cheese made from mozzarella and cream. The outer casing is solid cheese, while the inside contains stracciatella and clotted cream, giving it an unusual, soft texture. It is a speciality of the Puglia region of southern Italy.
In France, the appellation d'origine contrôlée is a label that identifies an agricultural product whose stages of production and processing are carried out in a defined geographical area – the terroir – and using recognized and traditional know-how. The specificity of an AOC product is determined by the combination of a physical and biological environment with established production techniques transmitted within a human community. Together, these give the product its distinctive qualities.
Vincotto is a dark, sweet, thick paste produced in rural areas of Italy. It is made by the slow cooking and reduction over many hours of non-fermented grape must until it has been reduced to about one-fifth of its original volume and the sugars present have caramelized. It can be made from a number of varieties of local red wine grapes, including Primitivo, Negroamaro and Malvasia Nera, and before the grapes are picked they are allowed to wither naturally on the vine for about thirty days. In Roman times it was known as sapa in Latin and epsima in Greek, the same names that are often used for it in Italy and Cyprus, respectively, today.
Traditional balsamic vinegar is a type of balsamic vinegar produced in Modena and the wider Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Unlike inexpensive "Balsamic Vinegar of Modena" (BVM), Traditional Balsamic Vinegar (TBV) is produced from cooked grape must, aged at least 12 years, and protected under the European protected designation of origin (PDO) system, fetching higher prices. Although the names are similar, TBV and the inexpensive imitation BVM are very different.
The Siracusa lemon is the fruit of the cultivar femminello and its clones, corresponding to the botanical species Citrus × limon L. Burm. The femminello cultivar from Siracusa is the most common variety of lemon in Italy, and produces three main flowerings: the primofiore, the bianchetto and the verdello. The disciplinary regulations of the Siracusa lemon (PGI) forbids the use of waxes and/or fungicides in post-harvesting, and therefore the fruit is edible in all its parts.
The cioccolato di Modica is an Italian protected geographical indication (PGI) specialty chocolate, typical of the comune (municipality) of Modica, in Sicily, characterized by an ancient and original recipe using manual grinding which gives the chocolate a peculiar grainy texture and aromatic flavor. As prodotto agroalimentare tradizionale (PAT), it is a specialty officially recognized by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry Policies. Modica chocolate is made "cold" according to a traditional recipe and is not conched.
Vialone Nano is an Italian semifino (medium-grain) rice variety. It is typical of the flat, rice-growing areas of the southern province of Verona, in Veneto.
Vialone Nano is a cultivar of the Japonica group of varieties of Oryza sativa.
Uva di Puglia PGI is a variety of grape grown in the southern Italian region of Apulia (Puglia).
The Chianti Wine Consortium is a self-governing association of winegrowers operating in Tuscany, Italy. It was founded in Florence in 1927 with the aim of ensure the quality and authenticity of Chianti wines, which have a long-standing tradition and recognition both in Italy and abroad. The Consorzio protects and promotes the interests of Chianti wine producers from the provinces of Florence, Siena, Arezzo, Pisa, Prato, and Pistoia.
Francesco Aggazzotti was an Italian lawyer, agronomist, oenologist, politician, and notary.
