Please note that we do not send printed copies of instructions with your purchase. If you would like to have a printed version, you can open a printable PDF by clicking here.

Instructions

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

• What to do once your Organic Certified Red Wine Vinegar Mother arrives
• What equipment do I need?
• What ingredients do I need?
• Activation Process
• Fermentation Process

What to do once your Organic Certified Red Wine Vinegar Mother arrives:

Your order will contain an Red Wine Vinegar Mother and some starter vinegar. This is enough to make a 1 litre of raw Red Wine Vinegar Vinegar. Don’t worry though; the mother grows pretty fast so your be making much more in no time at all.

Once you receive your Red Wine Vinegar starter from us, it’s best to get it fermenting as soon as possible. 

What equipment do I need?

Brewing Jar
You need something to ferment your Red Wine Vinegar in. We recommend using something glass. Glass is much easier to clean and keep sterile. Plastic tends to degrade over time and is prone to scratches which can harbour unwanted bacteria. Plastic also carries a risk of chemical contamination from the materials contained inside of it such as BPA. A glass Kilner style jam jar is perfect to use.

Jar cover
You also need something to cover your jar with. We recommend paper kitchen towels as they are easy to discard and replace. You can also use a muslin cloth or similar if you wish. Rubber bands also come in handy to secure the cover to the jar.

What ingredients do I need?

The bacteria in the starter require sugar to ferment the wine into vinegar. You will need to use a sweet wine such as a Moscato. If you use a medium or dry wine. You can add a little cane sugar to a dry white wine if that is all you have available. However, for the best results we recommend a sweet, red wine is used. If you do use sugar, use 30g per litre.

Fermentation Process:

1. Add the Red Wine Vinegar mother and starter vinegar to the glass jar.
2. Fill the remainder of the jar with your wine.
3. Add the sugar if you have used medium or dry red wine and stir well.
4. Cover the jar so that it can still breath, but no dust can get in.
5. Leave the jar at room temperature for a minimum of 8-12 weeks.

After 8 weeks have passed, your vinegar should be murky and you will usually see a new mother has formed. At this point, taste your vinegar. It should taste like vinegar. If it does not, it will need a little longer.

At this stage you will usually now have two mothers. It is unusual for a new mother not to form with each batch of vinegar made. If it has not, it could be the wine you used was not sweet enough.

Always ensure you keep some of the vinegar as a starter for the next batch. You will need around 100ml of vinegar as a starter for every litre you wish to make. This is really important, without the starter vinegar added, you run the risk of mould forming. If you now have several mothers, add one to each batch.