mass market red wine vinegar

[Danimal]

Any suggestions? I have some really cheap stuff that destroys anything its in.

[pasuga]

I'm a mad fan of Pastene red wine vinegar. About 20 years ago I went to dinner with my Mom in Boston's North End (Italian neighborhood.)... salad was her favorite thing. She asked about the dressing (a simple and delicious oil and vinegar prep with some seasonings) and the waiter brought out the bottle for us to see. It's a bit less sharp than most inexpensive red wine vinegars, and makes wonderful dressings with decent olive oil.

[jumpingmonk]

I personally have a fondness for a brand called Etrusco or Etrvsco (because of the way it's written, it could be either.) which I pick up at a little store I know I'm not sure if it counts as mass market but at $7 per liter, I'm not really sure it counts as expensive either. Look for a logo of two greek looking individuals (one young one old) on either side of an amphorae. This stuff is my go to vinegar for a lot of things. In partiucalr it is exactly the strength I find ideal for making things like Horatiki and marinades. Well balanced, nice flavor (I think it is Chianti based)

[racer x]

Looks like the company spells it Etrusco on their website.
http://www.sibelsrl.it/
(But for the ancient Romans, and their predecessors, the Etruscans, there was no u in the alphabet. They used only v.)

[jumpingmonk]

I was aware of that, it was simply pointing out that, with the squared off, pseudo chiseled type they used the letter could be interpreted as either. And while it is true that the letter was always "v" the letter itself was referred to as "u" that's why the next letter is called "double u" not "double v". It's still not all that uncommone to use "V" instead of "U" when engraving (or why, on some old US coins (mercury dimes come to mind) the saying goes "IN GOD WE TRVST".
But however you spell it, it's still damn good vinegar.

[erica]

I'm about to finish my bottle of everyday red wine vinegar. I would love to hear opinions of which brand to buy next for use mainly in salad dressing and, less often, to finish meat preparations. I cannot access the Cook's link posted above..

[Val]

How strange that you can't access it--it works fine and I'm not a paying member of CI...perhaps try it now:
http://www.cooksillustrated.com/taste...

Okay, I see the problem ... you can't access the comparison chart...also, that article was from 2003--er, a little outdated...heh, way to go Val... Well, I have Pompeian and really like it ... others here really like Spectrum.

[DebL]

CI's recommended brand is Spectrum Naturals. I have it and like it.

[erica]

Thanks! Spectrum is the one that I am about to finish. The interesting thing is that each week or so, before I used it, I had to filter out the cloudy "mother" that formed in the bottle. I had never had this experience before--maybe because it is an organic product? I will pick up either that or the Pompeiian this week....

[connies419]

This is one of my very favorite red wine vinegars, and I have the same experience. So I just refrigerate it. :-)

[foodie555]

Hey, if you go to this link, you can access it:
http://www.cooksillustrated.com/image...
says that Spectrum and Pompeian are the best and that people like sweeter ones, which I've experienced too. I wonder whether it's worth trying the gourmet ones. "How to cook everything" says the best red wine vinegars come from CA or Spain and cost $8-$30.

[cgfan]

Though the OP seems to be looking for a mass-market RWV, perhaps you're looking for a tasty alternative. The RWV that has most impressed me was a product produced by Steven Singer called Aceto Vivo. It is one of the rare RWV's on the market that's unpasteurized, hence the "Vivo" in its name.

I came across it when I was looking for an unpasteurized RWV to build my own RWV mother to culture my own vinegar at home, and when I tried it I was blown away. Incredible product, but unfortunately as hard to find as it is delicious.

[mrbozo]

Decent balsamic from Modena can be bought at a very good price. Granted that it may not have the bite you're looking for but ...

[Cheese Boy]

Colavita brand aged white wine vinegar is very good. I'm sure the red is comparable in quality, and both come very reasonably priced in convenient 17oz bottles.

[Val]

I have Pompeian in my cabinet right now...have also enjoyed Cento..would go with either but I read an article the other day at Cooks Illustrated where they tested red wine vinegars and the conclusion was NOT to purchase gourmet versions of this particular vinegar...that the grocery store is a fine place to purchase it.
Okay, I HAD to go look for the link, here it is (sheesh!):

http://www.cooksillustrated.com/tasti...

[Danimal]

thanks for that link. I have regina brand vinegar, and apparently cooks illustrated agrees that its terrible.

[Val]

Also, did everyone here already know that the brand "Cento" is pronounced
"Chento"? I did not know that til I saw a commercial for it on tv recently...I'd been going around pronouncing it "Sento." Just wanted to share....

[janniecooks]

Cento red wine vinegar is my favorite mass market vinegar. Not too sharp.

[chef chicklet]

I use to buy Pompei, not expensive but I found it so good. Can't find anymore.

[chef chicklet]

What a hoot!! I never realized this was actually called Pompeian. I never noticed the an. Anyway I see that I can get 12 bottles on Amazon....they must have this somewhere... I thought about it when I was eating my salad with red wine vinegar and olive oil dressing tonight. love that.