Vinegar Pot Instructions

• Before use, clean the vinegar pot in hot, soapy water; the pot (with tap removed) is dishwasher safe. Prime the cork (see important directions below for priming the cork).
• Bring 1.5 liters of any fine-quality vinegar to a boil and carefully pour into the vinegar pot.
• In 24 hours, add 1 liter of fine-quality red or white wine, then store the pot at room temperature. The vinegar produced will reflect the quality and flavor of the wines used – the better the wines, the better the vinegar.
• In 10 days, add more wine to the mixture until the pot is three-quarters full, or approximately .5 liter of wine.
• Depending on the time of year, the vinegar should be ready to dispense in 2 to 3 weeks. Please note: It takes twice as long to make vinegar during winter than it does during summer.
• If you begin a new batch using a bit of the previous one, the vinegar production will be faster. Simply measure the amount of vinegar you have dispensed, and then add the same amount of wine to the original mixture.

Priming the cork

• To prime the cork, soak the cork stopper in warm water for at least 4 hours to soften the cork. Then insert the tap slowly in the vinegar pot, turning gently to avoid forcing the stopper, which could result in breakage. The stopper must be inserted sufficiently to ensure that the vinegar pot is leakproof. Prior to starting your vinegar batch, you may want to leave your vinegar pot filled with water overnight to test that the cork and tap are leakproof.

Other Notes:

• Your stopper should last several years. After a few years, it may need to be replaced to prevent leakage.
• Do not allow the layer of foam that floats on top to become too thick. This layer is known as the mère or the “mother.” To reduce the volume of the mother, spoon some off and discard it; it is best to discard from the under layer, and keep the upper part, which is more active in fermentation. Alternatively you can give some of the mother to friends to start their own batch of vinegar. They only need to add wine to it, as the mother is the catalyzing agent that makes the vinegar.

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