The unique and inimitable TRADITIONAL BALSAMIC VINEGAR has been produced for centuries along a restricted strip of the Po land along the borders of the province of Modena, with the exception of the Apennine areas, since the microclimate in that particular area is not adapt for this kind of production. This fortunate geographical area is that surrounding the town of Spilamberto, land of the house of Este domain, to which both the birth and the conservation of this worldly unique tradition are linked. The historical data of the origin of traditional balsamic vinegar has been enveloped and partly disrupted by the fascination of the legend. The only actual traces, of the first historical, reliable and objective documents, from a technical and scientific point of view, that exist are dated back to 1800. It is however fascinating to dig back into the past to look for information and curiosities on the alleged birth of balsamic vinegar. The exact age of the very first encounters with balsamic vinegar production is unknown. It was probably quite casual, maybe a small amount of grape must (Saba) had been left in an unknown place and when it was discovered, after a long time, had a sweet and sour taste due to the slow acetification process that it underwent. The first written evidence referring to the existence of balsamic vinegar, although this particular word was not used, can be found in the "Vita Mathildis" chronicle from the 19th century by the Benedictine monk Donizone and refers to a historical episode in 1046, the year in which the Emperor Henry III descended to Rome and stopped in Piacenza, where he asked to be brought, as a gift, a small bottle of "laudatum acentum" on behalf of the Marquise Boniface, Matilda of Canossa's father. Around 1228, at the time of Obizzo II , the lord of Modena and Reggio Emilia, barrels of vinegar were already being preserved at the court of the house of Este. A written document, dated 1556 states a precise classification of the different types of vinegar and their different uses. When the house of Este moved from Ferrara to Modena in 1598, the Dukes paid particular attention and interest to the making of traditional balsamic vinegar. Several written documents confirm that at the Dukes court, balsamic vinegar was usually made to use in the court or was given, as a gift, to particularly important people. Of course it was only given to the more wealthy classes. The passion for this condiment lead the house of Este to assign the vinegar production to the left tower of the Ducal Palace in Modena. In 1700 balsamic vinegar was already known in Europe. In some archived documents there is the mention of a request for vinegar from an English merchant and from Count Michael Woronzon, the Lord High Chancellor of Muscovy, to Duke Francis III . The word "balsamic" was still not mentioned, however there is proof of how well-known this precious product already was in Europe. The first explicit mention of the word can be found only in a Dukes register dated 1747 and this adjective is linked to the particular characteristics traditionally given to the vinegar. The vinegar was used and appreciated above all for its medicinal properties as apposed to a food product. In 1508 Lucrezia Borgia experimented the therapeutic properties of balsamic vinegar while giving birth. Ludovico Antonio Muratori, a well-known historian from Vignola, in his treaty "Treating and controlling the plague" wrote some useful remedies using vinegar as possible antidotes against the plague which tormented Europe in 1630. He suggested to protect oneself with ablution, gargling and to use it as a tonic against infected air by leaving a few drops on the coals of the fire.
It is also said that Gioacchino Rossini, a well-known musician from Pesaro, thanked the Kapellmeister of the Duke of Modena for having sent him some balsamic vinegar with which he managed to relieve the pain caused by the scurvy he had been suffering from for a long time. Balsamic vinegar was also used in order to soothe inflammation of the mucosas, as can be found in some documents mentioning Duke Francesco IV (1779 - 1846) which says, he always travelled with a case of vinegar so as to relieve him of pain due to his weak health conditions. Apparently balsamic vinegar was also considered to have aphrodisiac properties according to Giacomo Casanova. After the French revolution , in 1796, the west tower of the Ducal Palace in Modena, where the vinegar was made and which had been confiscated from Duke Hercules III, was auctioned by the French Republic . Not all of the barrels were sold. In 1859, Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, at the time first minister of king Vittorio Emanuele II , ordered the best barrels to be transferred to the castle of Moncalieri, where unfortunately, the lack of knowledge regarding this particular product brought about the loss of this immense fortune. In 1862 Francesco Aggazzotti, a lawyer from Emilia, sent two letters, one to Pio Fabriano of Spilamberto and another to Ottavio Ottavi of Moncalieri stating precise instructions on how to proceed in the production of balsamic vinegar by prescribing the use of only cooked must as the base material, instead of wine vinegar, changing the previous tradition. From then on this was the only method used to produce balsamic vinegar. Over the centuries, the notes and the uses passed on from one generation to another have managed to safeguard the tradition and the authentic working process for the production of balsamic vinegar, a tradition that even today is jealously kept and preserved by the Guild of Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Spilamberto, one of the oldest in the world, founded 26 August 1969 by "The first Great Master" Rolando Simonini. The Guild nowadays has more than one thousand members, among which producers, gastronomists and historians for the historical aspects, and traditional balsamic vinegar of Modena chemists. The guild also promotes and sustains shows such as the annual contest among the producers, the publication of specialised research and it is also in charge of the training of young vinegar tasters. The Guild and its vinegar cellar are open to the public where it is possible to purchase balsamic vinegar. en years later, 14 September 1979, the Consortium of Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena was founded, the official body for the surveillance and for the safeguarding of the "Appellation Controleè" of the "Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena" according to the Ministerial decree dated 15 May 1987.  The authentic traditional balsamic vinegar of Modena is obtained after a very long maturing and ageing process from, cooked must from the pressing and the cooking of grapes from our area, mainly Lambrusco grapes from Modena and Trebbiana grapes. The cooking and cooling process is then followed by a series of pouring and putting into barrels of different sizes and of different wood types. After 25 years of ageing its possible to obtain the very rare "extra old". Balsamic vinegar, in its ageing range, is used for cooking fresh vegetables, sauces, meat, for completing fish dishes and also on strawberries and ice cream. Thanks to this condiment, the already well-known Emilian cuisine enjoys further recognition all over the world.