Wine vinegar:: technology, authenticity and quality evaluation

Wine vinegar is produced in most Mediterranean countries and extensively used as a condiment, acidifying and food preserving agent. Traditional production requires maturation in wood for many years to obtain a high acetic degree and the resulting product is relatively expensive. New technologies are being designed to overcome this difficulty with the objective of producing vinegars with a similar quality and at the same time less expensive. These methods of production involve the use of submerged bacterial culture and a continuous aeration system. Recent research is focussed in improving yield and quality of the final product. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.