quality aged balsamic vinegar- tips

[alpinerabbit]

mmmh I just had some of our austrian (styrian) pumpkin seed oil over my pasta, ever had that? it's good with balsamic vinegar as a salad dressing too...

*fingerlickin'*

[Reesha]

This is an old thread, but I'll bump it.

My secret place to buy the really expensive bottles of balsamic and extra virgin olive oil is TJ Maxx, Marshalls or Homegoods. Best balsamic I've ever had was Napa Valley Harvest. It was thicker than blood! I think it was barrel aged for four years or something. Mmmmm.

[papaver]

I'm with Oakleaf. How much do you want to spend? Find a pretty bottle.
What you're buying is old vinegar with some sugar added. I've had the cheap and the expensive, and when you toss it into a salad, there's not that much difference. But it's a gift, and it would be tacky to put a bottle of safeway brand in a basket as a gift.

That's just it! A good balsamico vinegar doesn't have caramel or sugar added! But those are really expensive (over 50$ for a 250 ml bottle). A good alternative is Saporoso. http://www.acetaiamalpighi.it/saporoso.htm