From Balsamic Beginnings to Innovative Creations: Acetificio Mengazzoli’s Incredible Journey
How did Acetificio Mengazzoli S.n.c. start its journey in the world of vinegar production, and what role did Balsamic Apple Vinegar play in its early history?
Vinegar in Mantua is a tradition that is lost over time and which was handed down from father to son. Acetificio Mengazzoli is a historic company that was founded in 1962, from the dream of Giorgio and Carla Mengazzoli to continue the Italian art of producing vinegar and spread it throughout the world.
Their children Cesare and Elda then promoted the diversification of production, undertaking a growth path that combined attention to raw materials and the use of increasingly modern equipment, without sacrificing anything to their parents’ wealth of experience. Tradition and innovation are perfectly combined in this family-run company.
«Our research activity is continuous and has led us over the years to explore, learn about and welcome different fermentation methods, traditions and ingredients of fermented products around the world. The pleasure of discovering and experimenting with new flavors and fragrances, and then merging them with our tradition and new production techniques, is what drives us to innovate every day, giving life to new products”, underline Cesare and Elda.
Thanks to this research, between past, present and future, unique products were born such as Apple Balsamic Vinegar, Mostagri, Agresto di Mantova, “Parpaccio” grating vinegar, Wo’t Acidulati, balsamic creams based on Balsamic Vinegar of Modena I.G.P., designed in the early 90s with a team of international chefs.
«The constant attention to the market has continuously stimulated us to provide consumers with products characterized by high quality and healthiness standards, with ever greater attention to sustainability, also promoting organic product lines and increasingly green activities: from the reduction of packaging to the use of lighter bottles for lower energy consumption in the production of fuel for transport, to give some examples.”
Vinegar can be obtained starting from different raw materials.
Can you share the origins and evolution of Wine Vinegar at Acetificio Mengazzoli S.n.c.? How does it differ from traditional Balsamic Vinegar?
The most famous and appreciated vinegars are certainly those based on grapes/wine, but there are also other excellences. One of these is certainly apple cider vinegar which at Acetificio Mengazzoli becomes “Améa XX“, an organic apple balsamic, aged in barrique and characterized by a strong sweet and sour and fruity aroma, with a velvety palpability.
Améa is suitable for risottos with herbs and fruit, grilled and baked white veal meats, boiled meats and vegetables. Pleasant on ice creams and fruit salads. Particularly suitable for apple strudels and cakes with dried fruit. It is also excellent as a thirst quencher, it can be diluted in tonic water or used in the preparation of non-alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks.
The consumption of apple cider vinegar in drinks has ancient origins, there is evidence of its consumption diluted in water even at the time of the ancient Romans who used it for its ability to be invigorating for the body.
Améa is obtained from a single ingredient, concentrated apple juice, fermented in a natural static way in barriques and left to mature for a long period, to obtain a direct transformation of the sugars into acetic acid and thus create a less pungent acidity and a correct balance with the sugar residues of the raw material. The choice to create an organic product comes from afar, because Mengazzoli has joined the organic production system since 1984.
From the supply chain analysis, the company decided to totally govern the organic process, intervening directly in the controls upstream of the vinegar production, appointing an external supervisor to control and guarantee it. Thus the “Safe-Biological Mengazzoli Project” was born to produce safe products, guaranteeing and certifying the activities carried out to eliminate all substances potentially harmful to the human body.
What sets Acetificio Mengazzoli S.n.c.’s Crema di Balsamico apart from other condiments? How has this product become a staple in kitchens around the world?
The Balsamic Cream from Acetificio Mengazzoli was studied with a team of international chefs, who established the fundamental criteria for a thickened product (not a glaze!) which reproduced the preparation techniques commonly found in preparations based on Balsamic Vinegar of Modena I.G.P., wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar. This production process avoids the carbonization of the sugars and therefore the resulting bitter taste, together with the controlled conservation of the acidity given by the vinegar.
The Balsamic Cream is capable of flavouring, filling and decorating any dish, from appetizers to desserts, thanks to the velvety taste that meets the aromatic intensities of: truffle, raspberry, vanilla, lemon, mango, chestnuts, soy and ginger, walnuts and pears, figs, Ligurian basil, to give life to 11 references for professional use, all however sharing the presence of 92% Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI.
The choice of ingredients to form these creams was followed scrupulously, selecting pure foods that do not give the product unwanted or antagonistic flavors to those of vinegar and which, at the same time, do not overpower the dish but become a balanced component, giving the right amount of aroma and flavour.
The particular shape of the 2 mm decorative tip cap and the very high viscosity of the product also allow the creation of particular decorations with precision and speed, because in the modern kitchen even the eye wants its part (with a 320 g bottle decorates approximately 500 plates with 12 cm embroidery).
Tell us about the unique characteristics of Balsamic Vinegar of Modena. How has Acetificio Mengazzoli S.n.c. preserved and celebrated the traditions of this famous vinegar variety?
Balsamic Vinegar of Modena is one of the best-known and most appreciated PGIs of Emilia-Romagna at a national and international level. Respecting the precise indications of the production specifications, Acetificio Mengazzoli has created the “Senso” line: four products for as many “color” and organoleptic nuances. Thus were born: Senso Rosa, Senso Azzurro, Senso Verde oliva and Senso Oro, each of which is an expression of great value, the result of work, the choice of raw materials, their transformation and their refinement.
Senso Rosa (PINK) Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI, with a simple sugar value which brings back a particular density. On the palate it is pleasantly intense, round. Suitable for balancing combinations with the flavors of the oil, it is ideal for salads, crudités, sophisticated and intense vinaigrettes, fresh cheeses and boiled vegetables.
Senso Azzurro (LIGHT BLUE) Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI, of measured organoleptic value, given by a complexity of peculiar sugar and acid contents, has great freshness and great balance, for a strong, enveloping and fruity flavour. Suitable for winter salads, such as red radicchio, fennel, mixtures of dried fruit and grains, wild meats and game; very interesting for fruit, such as apples and other floury and not very sweet fruits, both cooked and raw.
Sense Green olive (GREEN OLIVE) Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI, of particular complexity and evident dense characteristic, this vinegar has excellent qualities of viscosity, intense and deep color, persistent and very sweet taste, which give great value to the product. Suitable for helping the final taste of a dish, becoming a fundamental part of white meats with highly aromatic herbs, strong and tasty vegetables, soups and soups rich in legumes and boiled meats. Also try it on strawberries and ice cream.
Senso Oro (GOLD) Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI, with a strong and unique organoleptic value for a set of well-balanced and strongly united scents, capable of giving true roundness of aromas, taste and density. Dense, structured, harmonious on the palate.
Suitable to be tasted pure at the end of a meal as a digestive, enhancer of frozen creams, ice creams, on corn cakes, for appetizers with smoked fish and on particularly fatty fish such as cod and salmon, for important braises, in cooking with reduction in sauce and natural.
These Balsamic Vinegars of Modena PGI from Acetificio Mengazzoli are produced in the Mirandola factory, following a unique and traditional process of processing from partially fermented and cooked grape must, obtained exclusively from the following vines:
Lambrusco, Sangiovese, Trebbiano, Albana, Ancellotta, Fortana and Montuno. A portion of vinegar aged for at least 10 years and a minimum of 10% of vinegar obtained from the acidification of wine is added to the must.
↑↑↑Liquid Gold↑↑↑
What milestones and achievements have shaped the history of Acetificio Mengazzoli S.n.c. in producing high-quality vinegar products, and how do these products continue to influence culinary experiences today?
Product innovation is one of the characteristics that distinguishes the activity of Acetificio Mengazzoli. From continuous research and experimentation, “Parpaccio” was born, a new ingredient in Italian cuisine, which enriches and completes dishes.
It is a solid vinegar waiting to be re-transformed into the interpretations of chefs and cooking enthusiasts; a new culture of sublimation of the liquid mass into solid, to then transform it into something else again, for example by melting it and deforming it into refined shapes, cutting it into layers to obtain transparencies, drying it to increase its crunchy density, even to the point of making it become powder , crystallize it or simply grate it into endless sheets.
A “different” way of using vinegar, which emerges in its fragrances no longer as a liquid element to be smelled and savored, but through its chewing.
The company explains: «Parpaccio is a new spirit that we want to bring into the kitchen for a vinegar, which through its metamorphosis allows for fun ideas for dishes and recipes. A further evolution for a food like vinegar which has always inspired us to interpret tastes and fragrances which are here elevated, thanks to new concepts, in its consumption. We wanted to go further, in researching the possibility of obtaining a new ingredient in its natural characterization.”
There are 4 products in the Parpaccio vinegar to grate line:
Balsamic (170 g), ideal for an aperitif on canapés, oysters, salads, foie gras, fresh and aged cheeses, fruit, desserts, ice cream. Excellent grated on first courses, risottos and pizza.
Raspberry (170 g), goes perfectly with roasts and white meats, surprisingly grated on fresh stuffed pasta. Excellent in rice, cereal or quinoa salads, but also in combination with fresh cheese, desserts and ice creams.
Lemon and Ginger (160 g), suitable for fish dishes, to try with salmon and trout, surprising in combination with prawns. Unmissable in summer salads, with tartare and ethnic dishes, fruit, desserts, ice creams and even in cocktails.
Orange and Cinnamon (160 g), perfect for first courses, risottos, salads, fresh and mature cheeses. Excellent grated on white meats and fish, desserts, ice creams and cupcakes. It amazes with couscous and ethnic dishes.
Acetificio Mengazzoli S.n.c.
Via Della Costituzione 41/43, 46010, Levata di Curtatone (MN) Italy
Via Manuzio Aldo il Vecchio, 12, 41037, Mirandola (MO) Italy
Tel: (+39) 0376 47444 – Fax (+39) 0376 478231
