The market · Seasonings and ferments · Southern Europe

Sherry vinegar

Vinegar from sherry, aged in oak casks — nutty, woody and deeper than wine vinegar.

nutty · woody · tangy

What to do with it

Ibu Sari's Beef rendangSherry vinegar would cut through its richness Ana Etxarri's Pil pilSherry vinegar would cut through its richness Tolu Adeyemi's SuyaSherry vinegar would cut through its richness Tolu Adeyemi's Rendang, the Lagos waySherry vinegar would cut through its richness

Classics built on it

AndalusianGazpachoA cold soup of raw tomato, pepper, cucumber, garlic, bread, olive oil and vinegar, blended smooth and drunk in the heat.No one here has made it yet AndalusianAjoblancoA cold white soup of almonds, bread, garlic, olive oil and vinegar, blended smooth and served with green grapes or melon.No one here has made it yet AndalusianEspinacas con garbanzosSpinach and chickpeas cooked with a pounded paste of fried bread, garlic, cumin and pimentón, sharpened with a splash of vinegar.No one here has made it yet Castilian and MadridPatatas bravasChunks of fried potato with a hot, pimentón-red sauce — the bar tapa found all over Spain.No one here has made it yet

Kinds

Vinagre de Jerez: At least six months in wood.
Reserva: At least two years.
Gran Reserva: At least ten; for drops, not dressings.

If you can't find it

Spanish delis and supermarkets.

1Red wine vinegar
The same, or cider vinegar
You lose the nutty, oaky depth.

Goes with

olive oil tomato shallot garlic

Cooked with, here

butter flaky salt–8 hours ahead marinate the fishabout 30 g well-aged comtébutter plus a little neutral oilcaperchivechopped parsley

Put with it only once, though they're used elsewhere here — where experiments start:

How much, here

Comté French Toast BitesSherry vinegarDaryl Shio Koji–Mirin Halibut3 Tbsp sherry vinegarDaryl · 3.5% of the dish

Knowing it

Where to buy: Spanish delis and good supermarkets.
Worth knowing: A few drops lift gazpacho, lentils and pan juices.

Kitchens that keep it in

Andalucía — the south of Spain, from the Atlantic at Cádiz to the Mediterranean at AlmeríaAndalusianThe hot south: cold soups pounded from bread, oil and garlic, fish fried crisp in olive oil, sherry from Jerez, and a little something to eat with every drink.7 classics

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