Secolare - Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena DOP Extra Vecchio

An exclusive Limited Series selection from the Malpighi attic — Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena DOP Extra Vecchio, aged inside century-old wooden barrels whose age and grain shape the vinegar in ways no younger cask can. Density 1.36, acidity 5-6%. Limpid, dark and lustrous brown in the glass; balanced, elegant and round on the nose; dense, velvety, persistent and woody on the palate.

The "Secolare" designation refers to the barrels, not the bottle. The vinegar inside is an Extra Vecchio DOP — at least twenty-five years old, in compliance with Regulation EC 813/2000 — but the wood that has shaped it has been working in Modena for a hundred years and more, and that long exposure to wood that has itself absorbed generation after generation of vinegar leaves a recognisable mark: the syrupy density, the woody finish, the depth that only this kind of cask can give. 100% natural — no caramel, no colourings, no additives.

Acetaia Malpighi has been tending its barrels since 1850. The cooked grape must from Modenese grapes — Trebbiano and Lambrusco — moves through a batteria of six woods (chestnut, cherry, juniper, mulberry, oak, acacia), then finishes in the century-old casks that give this selection its name. The 100 ml bottle is the official Giugiaro design for the DOP, presented in an elegant wooden case with a satin interior, with a TIC dosing cap and a recipe booklet. Strictly uncooked, in drops, on a porcelain or plastic spoon — never aluminium. Best as a meditation; equally at home on a sliver of well-aged Parmigiano, on fresh strawberries, on artisan vanilla ice cream, on dark chocolate flakes, on caviar, as a digestivo at the close of a meal.