Meticulous care and patience over 15 years, produces one of the finest and most sought-after black vinegars in Japan.
The dark appearance is similar to balsamic vinegar. Revered as a drink, when diluted with 10 parts water, the complex flavour is savoured, as with a fine wine. Expert care and long ageing in ceramic pots softens and refines the acidity, which is balanced with naturally occurring glucose. This process also raises amino acid content and darkens the colour of the Kurozu.
Black vinegar has been revered for its numerous health benefits for centuries. These include lowering blood pressure, lowering cholesterol, improving immunity and reducing the effects of stress.
Kurozu is also used to enhance both sweet and savoury dishes, the balance of umami and acidity combines exceptionally well with soft fruit, especially strawberries. It adds an elegant sourness and sweetness enhancing the natural flavour. For savoury dishes use where the flavour of vinegar can be appreciated, in simple dressings for example.
The fermentation and ageing techniques used to produce Kurozu black vinegar date from the Edo period, 7,000 years ago. Refined over centuries, the techniques used by Kakuida Fukuyama Kurozu are unchanged for the last 200 years.
Steamed brown rice and soya beans are mixed with koji and spring water in 54 litre ceramic pots called Tsubo. Fukuyama-cho spring water is renowned for its quality and its unique properties are an integral part of the process of making black vinegar.
Acetic fermentation follows the yeast fermentation so alcohol, in this case sake, is turned into acetic acid. The pots are stirred regularly with bamboo canes to improve oxygenation and control the bacterial reaction. Throughout the fermentation and ageing process, the head Kurozu craftsman, or “Brewmaster” will inspect each Tsubo using smell, taste, colour and viscosity to determine if the natural bacterial reaction is proceeding correctly.
The ceramic pots that hold the vinegar remain outdoors, where the vinegar is exposed to heat during the day and the cool sea breeze from Kagoshima Kinko Bay at night. These fluctuations are balanced by the size and shape of the clay pot, the result is ideal conditions for the bacteria to mature the vinegar.
The Vinegar slowly refines over time, this softens the acidic notes giving a rounder, milder taste. The sugar and amino acid content rise, and the colour darkens, during the ageing process.
All vinegars made by Kakuida Fukuyama Kurozu are aged for a minimum of 3 years, they are produced without any additives, colourings or preservatives.
Health Promoting Properties of Cereal Vinegars
Panagiotis Kandylis, Argyro Bekatorou, Dimitra Dimitrellou, Iris Plioni and Kanella Giannopoulou
Luís Manuel Lopes Rodrigues da Silva, Academic Editor
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7914830/
Extracts from this paper:
Vinegar has been used for its health promoting properties since antiquity. Nowadays, these properties are investigated, scientifically documented, and highlighted. The health benefits of vinegar have been associated with the presence of a variety of bioactive components such as acetic acid and other organic acids, phenolic compounds, amino acids, carotenoids, phytosterols, vitamins, minerals, and alkaloids, etc. These components are known to induce responses in the human body, such as antioxidant, antidiabetic, antimicrobial, antitumor, antiobesity, antihypertensive, and anti-inflammatory effects.
To conclude, this literature review highlights that the inclusion of cereal vinegars in the diet (as dressing or acidifier) can contribute to the health status and integrate current therapies against various pathologies. However, as pointed out in a systematic review and meta-analysis [103], which acknowledges the health benefits of vinegars and proposes vinegar consumption as part of a healthy diet, the amount of vinegar used to establish its bioactive properties varies across studies and is relatively small. Therefore, special attention should be paid to the generalization of the outcomes of clinical studies [103]. In addition, considering that the available data are relatively limited, further research combined with epidemiologic and case studies are essential for the scientific substantiation of the health benefits of cereal vinegars, that may also allow specific health claims from vinegar manufacturers and better consumer understanding.
Links for reference:
https://www.nippon.com/en/views/b01724/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4je5ZDwuaUE&ab_channel=GreatBigStory
https://jigsaw-japan.com/2021/01/30/its-a-condiment-its-a-health-food-its-black-vinegar/
