Quality Vinegar Source

A perfect storm of running out of Red Wine, Sherry and Champagne vinegars all at the same time has befallen me. Does anyone know of a vinegar source in Chicago that would have these and other vinegar varietals? Since I've got to replenish my supply anyway, I might as well explore the world of vinegar at the same time. I figure my first stop will be Fresh Farms in Niles, which seems to have at least a little bit of just about everything, but I'm wondering where else might be worthwhile. Caputo's or other Italian markets maybe? A vinegar superstore perhaps?

P.S. If I was in Tampa, I'd be heading to Mazzaro's vinegar & oil aisle.

Hi,

Your picture of the vinegar and oil aisle looks just like Tenuta's in Kenosha.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:Hi,

Your picture of the vinegar and oil aisle looks just like Tenuta's in Kenosha.

Regards,

Yes it does (Mazarro's is actually much bigger). Good call.

Go to the European Imports sale tomorrow (Tues) morning.

Rick T. wrote:Go to the European Imports sale tomorrow (Tues) morning.

And where would that be?

stevez wrote:And where would that be?

European Imports Ltd.
2475 N. Elston Ave.
Chicago, IL 60647
1-800-323-3464
www.eiltd.com

Cathy2 wrote:Your picture of the vinegar and oil aisle looks just like Tenuta's in Kenosha.

I thought the exact same thing.

Tenuta's

I've been checking this thread often hoping to find a good answer to this question myself. Finding decent vinegar is hard. Places like Jewel & Costco are ok for gallon jugs of cider vinegar, but their selection of wine vinegars is terrible. Whole Foods has them, but they are expensive for what you get. Old Town Oil has a lot of balsamics, and a little red, white, and champagne vinegars. Last time I needed a refill, I went to Bari (on Grand) thinking they'd be a good source for inexpensive olive oil and wine vinegars. No harvest/production dates on the olive oils (which is not uncommon among cheap stuff) and a small, but decent, selection of vinegars.

The main problem I find is that, apparently, 99.9% of the vinegar in Chicago is Balsamic (excluding white distilled and cider). It is startling how much shelf space is devoted to balsamic and how little is devoted to white wine, red wine, and champagne vinegars.

Thanks for the tip about European Imports.

Old Town Oil
http://www.oldtownoil.com/index.php
520 North Wells Street
Chicago, Illinois 60610
P: 312 787-9595

Edited to change D'Amatos to Bari (a natural mistake).

I haven't walked through a Treasure Island in a while, but I always remember them having a respectable selection.

Darren72 wrote:Old Town Oil has a lot of balsamics, and a little red, white, and champagne vinegars.

I was impressed with the quality of OTO's selection. Though they are not shy in the pricing department.

G Wiv wrote:

Darren72 wrote:Old Town Oil has a lot of balsamics, and a little red, white, and champagne vinegars.

I was impressed with the quality of OTO's selection. Though they are not shy in the pricing department.

Agreed. It is fun place to visit. They have a lot of oils, vinegars, and mixtures set up for tasting.

G Wiv wrote:

Darren72 wrote:Old Town Oil has a lot of balsamics, and a little red, white, and champagne vinegars.

I was impressed with the quality of OTO's selection. Though they are not shy in the pricing department.

The problem I have with this place and the other similar shop in Andersonville is the fact that they don't seem to have a quick enough turnover in their (overpriced) olive oil to insure freshness and their selection of vinegars is very limited. I'm going to check out Treasure Island today. I seem to remember them having a decent selection.

Purchased several 500ml bottles of Cannonau (Italian varietal grape) red wine vinegar at the EI sale today for $3.75 each. We like it very much and always look for it.

When I made raspberry white wine vinegar with last year's bumper crop of berries, I asked myself "where would an elderly Italian go to buy wine vinegar for a good price?"

I found a number of imported wine vinegars at the Butera at Cumberland and Montrose, all at a very reasonable price.

Next I ask myself where an elderly lottery player would buy a winning ticket . . . .

Giovanna

If you want to try some fantastic flavored vinegars, Old Town oil is your spot. The strawberry vinegar is so good, it is all you need as a salad dressing.

Freddy's.

I also hit Graziano's, Tony's, and Caputo's to stock my V & O reserves, but can't guarantee each would have multiple offerings of each requested type.

Oil & Vinegar (brand) stores are gone from Illinois, but check out the selection online (link is to tap, but prepackaged selections can also be found on the site):

http://thewoodlands.oilandvinegarusa.co ... e-tap.html

I was surprised at the quality and flavor of a few I received as a gift from these largely mall-based stores.

You can also try Olive & Well in Oak Park, a good pairing with an early dinner at Gaetano's, where I'd hope you'd catch the chef himself this time (he is very opinionated on oils and vinegars).

Since I'm not too fond of balsamic for everyday use, I'm always looking for good quality aged red wine vinegar, Champagne vinegar or Xeres vinegar.
I recently found out that Fresh Farms International on West Touhy avenue in Niles has a very decent selection of European vinegars, including good Italian and French, at more affordable prices than in stores mentioned upthread like Treasure Islands or Caputo.

It's not a vinegar superstore and it's been a while since I've been in, but have you considered City Olive in Andersonville? (You could visit after having your pizza at Great Lake! )

5408 North Clark Street
Chicago, Illinois 60640
773-878-5408 (phone)
Sunday 11:00am – 6:00pm
Monday – Closed
Tuesday – Thursday 11:00am – 6:30pm
Friday 11:00am – 6:30pm
Saturday 10:00am – 6:00pm

Thread Bump.

Canning season is upon us and I have this dilemma as well. Anyone know where I can get large quantities of a good champagne wine vinegar in Chicago.

I love basic white but always find it a bit harsh when canning. I do use it for cleaning house & think it's excellent for that purpose.

I just drained a bottle of Colavata Champagne wine vinegar, acidity is 7% so should be fine for canning and would love to find a vat of it or something similar.

I've been buying a lot of vinegar from Piatto Pronto, which is on Clark St between Olive and Bryn Mawr in Andersonville. I would call this a mid-market Italian-ish deli. They have a good selection of oils and vinegars. I don't know if they have Champagne vinegar (but they probably do). I've been buying liter-jars of red and white wine vinegar for pickling, etc.

Piatto Pronto
5624 North Clark Street
Chicago, IL 60660-4109
(773) 334-5688 ‎