ACV question

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JustMe

JustMe

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I make alot of my own from apple scraps and have 2 half gallon jugs working now..........but I also have and have used store bought.

I have a glass bottle of Heinz unfiltered all natural apple cider vinegar 'with the mother', raw unpasturized (all that is on the label)......though it looks to me the so called mother is sediment in the bottom. I don't see any thick blob.

But it has a bit of a fiz to it, almost like it's carbonated.....though when I dropped it on the counter a minute ago, it didn't explode or erupt like a soda would have.....but when I took off the screw cap, it does give that little 'burp' like there's some gases in there.

Is it supposed to be like that??? With the fizzy burp? I have never had any ACV whether homemade or store bought fiz before
 
Amish Heart said:
Ha Ha. Drunk chickens. Watching our crazy guineas today, come out of the old barn and step into a bunch of snow...they all sat in the trees this afternoon and I swear, were glaring at the ground.
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My chickens are wusses of the snow we got..........I opened the coop door, they all rushed me to get outside until they seen the white stuff. Slammed on their brakes right quick and refused to go out. I just made sure they had plenty of food & water, closed the door & went back to the house.
 
I'm curious how old your jug of vinegar is. I would imagine that the longer it ages, the more it would grow. I know that we used to have the mother in the vinegar when I was growing up. I remember the mother in vinegar being loose and floaty throughout the vinegar, unlike the scoby in kombucha that is like a rubbery piece that floats on top.
 
Weedygarden said:
I'm curious how old your jug of vinegar is. I would imagine that the longer it ages, the more it would grow. I know that we used to have the mother in the vinegar when I was growing up. I remember the mother in vinegar being loose and floaty throughout the vinegar, unlike the scoby in kombucha that is like a rubbery piece that floats on top.
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IIRC, I bought it within the last 2 years? I think,

As for the mother, I really don't know. Many years ago I had a jug of regular store bought vinegar that had sat around for a long time and when I went to use it, noticed there was a 'blob' in it, so I thought it had went bad and threw it away. My own mother yelled at me for it saying 'that was the mother, the good stuff, don't ever throw out vinegar it doesn't go bad'. I had no idea, but have never seen it again in any vinegar
 
JustMe said:
IIRC, I bought it within the last 2 years? I think,

As for the mother, I really don't know. Many years ago I had a jug of regular store bought vinegar that had sat around for a long time and when I went to use it, noticed there was a 'blob' in it, so I thought it had went bad and threw it away. My own mother yelled at me for it saying 'that was the mother, the good stuff, don't ever throw out vinegar it doesn't go bad'. I had no idea, but have never seen it again in any vinegar
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I remember as a kid seeing that blob in the vinegar and my grandmother told me it was the "Mother." Having made kombucha, I understand it now, but I'd bet that many people have thrown away vinegar because of the mother growing in it.
 
Weedygarden said:
I remember as a kid seeing that blob in the vinegar and my grandmother told me it was the "Mother." Having made kombucha, I understand it now, but I'd bet that many people have thrown away vinegar because of the mother growing in it.
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So tell me about this kombucha. I think I tried it once from the store a few years ago and IIRC it too had a little fiz to it and the more I think of it, the more it's like this vinegar. But isn't kombucha supposed to be like fermented tea or something like that??
 
JustMe said:
So tell me about this kombucha. I think I tried it once from the store a few years ago and IIRC it too had a little fiz to it and the more I think of it, the more it's like this vinegar. But isn't kombucha supposed to be like fermented tea or something like that??
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It is fermented tea that you add different things to it for flavor. It is fizzy and some people do not like it at all. It is supposed to be good for your gut health. Like all fermented things, it feeds off of sugar.
To make kombucha, you need immaculately clean tools such as a gallon jar. You also need a scoby, which is a spongy, gelatinous organism that causes it to brew. Scobies have to also be treated with care because they can get moldy and they can be killed. In my area, people will share extra scobies that they have. I got too distracted a few years ago, and quit making kombucha.
 
Weedygarden said:
It is fermented tea that you add different things to it for flavor. It is fizzy and some people do not like it at all. It is supposed to be good for your gut health. Like all fermented things, it feeds off of sugar.
To make kombucha, you need immaculately clean tools such as a gallon jar. You also need a scoby, which is a spongy, gelatinous organism that causes it to brew. Scobies have to also be treated with care because they can get moldy and they can be killed. In my area, people will share extra scobies that they have. I got too distracted a few years ago, and quit making kombucha.
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Yeah, I'm one of those that isn't too fond of it, but was wondering how or if vinegar plays a role in it.


I did try making keifer from grains for awhile, that had been dried I think. After about a week or so of changing out the milk, it had that fizziness to it and almost tasted like beer. I'm not sure why, but I actually liked that taste of the keifer since I hate beer. After a month or so, and the grains were changing so was the taste and I didn't like it anymore. Now, if I want probiotics I'll still with yogurt or go for raw milk.
 
lilmissy said:
To me, vinegar that you want to use as vinegar, should not be fizzy. I think it is turning to kombucha or mead.
on the other hand, how do you make vinegar?
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That's my thought too, vinegar shouldn't be fizzy.


To make apple cider vinegar, it's really easy. Take a mason jar and stuff it with apple peels & cores, sprinkle on a little sugar, then fill with water to cover the scraps. Cover the jar with a mesh or I use a paper towel held down with the jar ring and let it sit to work. Shake or stir it every day for a few weeks so it doesn't get mold on it. The apple scraps will start to break down and the mixture will ferment and maybe bubble over, which is fine, just wipe it off. Once it stops the bubbling and you can't smell it anymore, it should be vinegar. Strain off the vinegar & toss the scraps when it's as vinegary as you want it. You can test the acidity with ph strips. I never have, cause I don't know where to find them.


This is the recipe I first went by.....but I don't measure it, nor do I use as much sugar as it says so mine may take longer to turn which is fine. I figure the apple scraps have alot of natural sugars for it to work from. As long as the mixture has access to oxygen, which also carry natural yeasts, it works. Just know that it is a magnet for fruit flies in the beginning......but that's also a way to know if it's turned to vinegar or not cause the flies don't stick around once it has.


Homemade Apple Scrap Vinegar Recipe (thespruceeats.com)



I've made this a dozen times and only lost one batch to mold and that was because I had set the jar out in the shed and forgot to stir it up for a couple of days. Although I should have searched to find out if I could have just scraped off the bad part on top, and kept it going. At the time, I didn't think that kind of bacteria was a good thing to get in there.
 
@JustMe I do mine the same way basically.
I did have 1 I forgot about last season and it got some mold on top. Not a ton but a bit. Pulled the mold off and kept it going. It’s stayed smelling a little off (mold smell) from the mold but continued to ferment and no longer has the smell. It’s quite strong because I let it go so much longer. I read the vinegar kills the mold if it makes it so gave it a go.
 
Double R said:
@JustMe I do mine the same way basically.
I did have 1 I forgot about last season and it got some mold on top. Not a ton but a bit. Pulled the mold off and kept it going. It’s stayed smelling a little off (mold smell) from the mold but continued to ferment and no longer has the smell. It’s quite strong because I let it go so much longer. I read the vinegar kills the mold if it makes it so gave it a go.
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Thank you and I'll do that next time I find mold.
 
I recently made my own - over the course of the past month-ish. Ended up with a "mother" so that's good. Will get another apple and mash it up and keep the mother going until autumn when we cider apples. Then we can use the pulp for a larger batch.
 
LadyLocust said:
I recently made my own - over the course of the past month-ish. Ended up with a "mother" so that's good. Will get another apple and mash it up and keep the mother going until autumn when we cider apples. Then we can use the pulp for a larger batch.
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I've thought about it, just have never made it before. A gallon of organic AC vinegar is around $20. I'm trying to figure out what I need and to get the set up together. I've got a few gallon jars with glass tops that I've used for kombucha that I could use, without the lids. I need cloth for the top and those large rubber bands.
I recently heard or read someone talking about making cider and then using the pulp for vinegar. It may have been here somewhere. I have been seeing that the apples need to be organic. That makes perfect sense to me. I'm thinking I want to buy some apples, peel them, use my apple slicer, and then eat the apple and use the peelings and core for vinegar. I don't know how many years it will take for my apple tree to produce. I also wondered if anyone had ever made vinegar from pears? According to the video I just posted, the vinegar should be stored in the fridge after it is finished? I thought it was shelf stable after going through the process of making it.
Jugs: I have been looking for some glass gallon jugs. A few years ago I had several, but maybe I got rid of them when I got rid of my kombucha bottles.
 
Weedygarden said:
I've thought about it, just have never made it before. A gallon of organic AC vinegar is around $20. I'm trying to figure out what I need and to get the set up together. I've got a few gallon jars with glass tops that I've used for kombucha that I could use, without the lids. I need cloth for the top and those large rubber bands.
I recently heard or read someone talking about making cider and then using the pulp for vinegar. It may have been here somewhere. I have been seeing that the apples need to be organic. That makes perfect sense to me. I'm thinking I want to buy some apples, peel them, use my apple slicer, and then eat the apple and use the peelings and core for vinegar. I don't know how many years it will take for my apple tree to produce. I also wondered if anyone had ever made vinegar from pears? According to the video I just posted, the vinegar should be stored in the fridge after it is finished? I thought it was shelf stable after going through the process of making it.
Jugs: I have been looking for some glass gallon jugs. A few years ago I had several, but maybe I got rid of them when I got rid of my kombucha bottles.
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I've always though vinegar was shelf stable as well......but maybe the comment of putting in the fridge is for those who don't know and as an added precaution.


Also...my understand is vinegar can be made from most any fruit.
 
Weedygarden said:
I have a question: do you store your vinegar in glass or plastic, or either? I think glass is preferable, but it is not so easy to find glass jugs lately.
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So far, I keep mine in glass canning jars. I know store bought is sold in plastic jugs, so I guess that could be used as long as it's food grade. I think if I needed my canning jars back, I would reuse a store bought plastic jug, preferrably a vinegar jug so it's a same/same exchange. And only use a milk or juice jug if I really had to after being washed out good.
 
Weedygarden said:
I've thought about it, just have never made it before. A gallon of organic AC vinegar is around $20. I'm trying to figure out what I need and to get the set up together. I've got a few gallon jars with glass tops that I've used for kombucha that I could use, without the lids. I need cloth for the top and those large rubber bands.
I recently heard or read someone talking about making cider and then using the pulp for vinegar. It may have been here somewhere. I have been seeing that the apples need to be organic. That makes perfect sense to me. I'm thinking I want to buy some apples, peel them, use my apple slicer, and then eat the apple and use the peelings and core for vinegar. I don't know how many years it will take for my apple tree to produce. I also wondered if anyone had ever made vinegar from pears? According to the video I just posted, the vinegar should be stored in the fridge after it is finished? I thought it was shelf stable after going through the process of making it.
Jugs: I have been looking for some glass gallon jugs. A few years ago I had several, but maybe I got rid of them when I got rid of my kombucha bottles.
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I make ACV from the pulp from a friends cider operation. I never refrigerated mine. Vinegar has been around far longer than refrigeration.
 
Weedygarden said:
I've thought about it, just have never made it before. A gallon of organic AC vinegar is around $20. I'm trying to figure out what I need and to get the set up together. I've got a few gallon jars with glass tops that I've used for kombucha that I could use, without the lids. I need cloth for the top and those large rubber bands.
I recently heard or read someone talking about making cider and then using the pulp for vinegar. It may have been here somewhere. I have been seeing that the apples need to be organic. That makes perfect sense to me. I'm thinking I want to buy some apples, peel them, use my apple slicer, and then eat the apple and use the peelings and core for vinegar. I don't know how many years it will take for my apple tree to produce. I also wondered if anyone had ever made vinegar from pears? According to the video I just posted, the vinegar should be stored in the fridge after it is finished? I thought it was shelf stable after going through the process of making it.
Jugs: I have been looking for some glass gallon jugs. A few years ago I had several, but maybe I got rid of them when I got rid of my kombucha bottles.
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Sorry, I started to reply this AM but had to get going.
I chopped up an apple or two then drizzled a little honey (really just a drizzle, not much,) added a Tbl or 2 of vinegar w/ mother then filled the jar with water. The first week or two the apples kept trying to float so I added an antique canning lid - you know the kind, just the glass disk. It held the apples below the surface. Within another week or two, I had a Mother and cider vinegar. Lifted the mother, poured off the vinegar & tossed the apples. I put the mother in the fridge and with a little of the vinegar so it will keep until I get more apples. The remainder of the vinegar I put in a canning jar. I want to keep the mother going until fall when we make cider so I can use it to make vinegar faster/easier.
 
Caribou said:
I make ACV from the pulp from a friends cider operation. I never refrigerated mine. Vinegar has been around far longer than refrigeration.
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I think making ACV from your friends pulp is so resourceful. I am going to see if there is someone in my area that make make cider.

There was a nasty apple tree in my area, by a road, that was in bad shape. It had probably never been pruned, and it was full of dead branches and then the apples were all over the ground. I had never thought to ask the person whose property it was on if I could take the apples. And then, the tree was recently removed.

I planted an apple tree last year and it is so small. It may take years to get any apples from it!
 
This is some good info, thanks for sharing everybody. Does acv from the store go bad? How can you tell?

The reason I ask… I made some pepper sauce last summer and used acv. It just tasted off somehow. It didn’t taste bad but was less than pleasant. Need to throw it out it but it looks good in the bottle.
 
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