Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc Vinegar

We have long been fascinated with the idea of marrying the sweetness and complexity of wine grapes that have been left on the vine to concentrate the flavors and natural sugars, with the bright and crisp acidity of authentic Orleans Method vinegar. After years in the making we proudly present our proprietary Late Harvest Sauvignon BlancAgroDolce Vinegar to you and your customers.

AgroDolce in Italian means “sweet and sour.” To achieve this we harvested Sauvignon Blanc grapes from the Suisun Valley that borders Napa on its west side. The grapes have intentionally been left on the vine for at least a month to six weeks longer than if they were to be made into a dry finished wine. By harvest time they are almost “raisiny” from their concentration of fruit and sugars. This is the same tradition used for hundreds of years to make the great Sauternes of France. The unfermented juice from the grapes is blended into our proprietary wine vinegar and slowly aged in oak barrels until it is our balanced AgroDolce.

The finished vinegar is almost sherry-like in color and complexity with hints of vanilla from the wood, sweet apricot, fig and pear from the late-harvest grapes… supported by a strict backbone of crisp acidity from the vinegar base. Wow!

USES IN THE KITCHEN 
The versatility of this elixir will expand the repertoire of every level of cook. Some suggestions:

• For a simple salad dressing, add just a splash of olive oil (you will use less oil with the balanced acidity of AgroDolce than in your regular dressings)
• Pear, walnut and blue cheese salad with a splash of walnut oil and Agrodolce
• Anything with goat cheese tastes better with a touch of AgroDolce
• Mix with a bit of mustard, black pepper, herbs and olive oil to marinate chicken for the grill or to roast
• Spoon some Agrodolce over berries and serve with fresh ricotta cheese!
• Toss with peak summer tomatoes for a refreshing appetizer with mozzarella
• Use in a marinade or sauce for roasted pork or duck

There are no shortcuts to making great vinegar!

A few years ago with the help of some local grape grower friends, who share our passion for traditional and authentic foods, we ventured out to make vinegar in the centuries-old Orleans Method, first perfected in France. Most vinegar today is produced by a system that takes just hours, but removes most of the taste and the nutrients. In contrast, authentic vinegar is converted slowly over many months and gently from quality wines with the starter (called the “mother”) in oak barrels. This is the way we do it in our Suisun Valley Vinegar House, and the result is a startlingly rich elixir with fine balance and subtle complexity. Our vinegars are used everyday in some of the best restaurant kitchens in America.