List of Abbreviations -- Contents -- Chapter 1: Vinegar: Definition, Diffusion, and Uses -- 1.1 Legal Definition and Composition -- 1.2 Raw Materials and Critical Production Point -- 1.3 Market Trends -- 1.4 Use as a Preservative -- 1.5 Fermentation -- References -- Chapter 2: History of Balsamic Vinegars -- 2.1 Mystery and Myth: The Balsamic Family -- 2.2 Balsamic, a Linguistic Overview -- 2.3 From the Remote Past: The Origins (510 BCE-530 CE) -- 2.4 The Middle Ages (600 CE-1400 CE) -- 2.5 The Renaissance and Enlightenment (1400-1700) -- 2.6 The Casks and the Dukes (1764-1859) -- 2.7 A New Balsamic Era (1860-Today) -- References -- Chapter 3: The Balsamic Family -- 3.1 Balsamic Family: Legal Definitions -- 3.2 Composition and Main Features of Balsamic Vinegars and Condiments -- 3.2.1 Generic Balsamic Vinegars -- 3.2.2 Balsamic Vinegar of Modena -- 3.2.3 Traditional Balsamic Vinegars -- 3.2.4 Balsamic Condiments -- 3.3 Specific Traits of the Balsamic Family -- 3.3.1 The Colour of Balsamics -- 3.3.2 Sweet and Sour Taste -- 3.3.3 Pungency -- 3.3.4 Viscosity, Syrupiness, and Consistency -- 3.3.5 Relative Density -- 3.4 TBV Specific Properties -- 3.4.1 Chemical Composition of TBV -- 3.4.2 Colour and Spectrum Absorbance -- 3.4.3 Rheological Properties -- 3.4.4 TBV Composition Over the Last Three Decades -- 3.5 How to Discriminate Between Balsamics -- 3.5.1 Sugars -- 3.5.2 Brix and DeltaZ -- 3.5.3 Acidity -- 3.5.4 pH -- References -- Chapter 4: Balsamic Production: Raw Materials and Processes -- 4.1 Balsamic Vinegar Manufacturing Processes -- 4.2 Raw Materials and/or Ingredients -- 4.2.1 Vinegars -- 4.2.2 Grape Musts -- 4.2.3 Concentrated Grape Must -- 4.2.4 Cooked Grape Must -- 4.2.5 Glucose Syrup -- 4.2.6 Caramel -- 4.2.7 Other Ingredients or Additives for High Viscosity -- 4.3 Processing Operations for Balsamics.

4.3.1 Evaporation and Concentration -- 4.3.2 Cooking -- 4.3.3 Evaporation, Concentration, and Cooking of Grape Must by the Traditional Single Step Operation -- 4.3.3.1 Chemical Changes -- 4.3.3.2 Physical Changes -- 4.4 The Balsamic Production Process -- 4.4.1 Traditional Balsamic Vinegars from Modena and Reggio Emilia -- 4.5 The Common Balsamics: A Redeemed Tradition -- 4.6 Industrial Balsamic Vinegars -- 4.7 Condiments with Balsamic Vinegar -- References -- Chapter 5: Traditional Balsamic Vinegar as Coded by Us -- 5.1 The Grapes -- 5.2 The Cooked Must -- 5.3 The Base Wine -- 5.3.1 The Management of Vinification -- 5.3.1.1 How to Prepare a Pie De Cuve -- 5.3.1.2 The Influence of Yeast Species and Strain on the Composition of the Base Wine -- 5.4 The Base Vinegar -- 5.4.1 The Scaling Up of Acetification -- 5.4.2 The Selection of Acetic Acid Bacteria -- 5.5 The Maturing Process -- References -- Chapter 6: The Ageing of Balsamics: Residence Time, Maturity, and Yield -- 6.1 Mathematical Models to Calculate the Residence Time of Traditional Balsamic Vinegar -- 6.1.1 The Mass Model -- 6.2 The Yield, the Real Result -- 6.3 Maturity: Physical and Chemical Modification of the Vinegar Constituents -- 6.3.1 Chemical Changes -- 6.3.1.1 Sugar Degradation and High-Molecular Weight Compounds (Melanoidins) in TBV -- 6.3.2 Physical Change -- References -- Chapter 7: Sensorial Properties and Evaluation of Balsamic Vinegars -- 7.1 Official Procedures -- 7.2 Quality Evaluation of Traditional Balsamic Vinegars -- 7.2.1 Limitations of the Current TBV Tasting Procedures -- 7.3 The Balsamic Lexicon -- 7.4 Towards a New Questionnaire for the Sensory Analysis of Balsamic Vinegars -- 7.4.1 Tasting Procedure -- 7.4.2 Olfactory Perceptions -- 7.4.3 Gustatory Perceptions -- 7.4.4 Physical Perceptions -- 7.4.5 Visual Appearance -- 7.4.6 Guidelines for Sensory Score Ranking.

7.4.7 Conclusions -- 7.5 Vocabulary -- References -- Chapter 8: ``Balsamic:́́ A Global Debate -- 8.1 The Issue of European Protected Denominations on the Global Market -- 8.2 National and International Acceptance of Protected Balsamic Vinegars -- 8.3 Problems Related to Protected Geographical Status in the EU -- References.