Cherry & Vinegar from Fruchtwerker. Sour cherry vinegar – bright red, with a mild acidity.
Cherry & Vinegar from Fruchtwerker is a sour cherry vinegar from Talkau in Schleswig-Holstein: 25 percent sour cherries from European harvests, cold-macerated in brandy and wine vinegar, sweetened with sugar, with only 3 percent acidity. No added cherry flavoring, no concentrate, no coloring. 250 ml, mild and fruity – a fruit vinegar that is something different from balsamic or cherry liqueur.
Cherry vinegar is the variety that most closely acts like a red wine in the kitchen: dark, fruity, with an acidity that suits meat. Sour cherries bring exactly the balance that sweet cherries lack – a distinct acidity that rounds out the vinegar beyond mere sweetness. It is our insider tip among the berry varieties, and those who order it usually come back for more.
Sour cherry upfront, acidity on the finish, nothing added in between
This cherry vinegar tastes like sour cherries as you know them from the tree: fruity, slightly tart, with a hint of almond in the background that comes from the cherry pits. The acidity is mild and blends into the fruit rather than masking it. The sweetness – 53 grams of sugar per 100 grams – rounds it off without making the vinegar taste like cherry syrup.
The color is a clear, deep red, slightly darker than the raspberry vinegar and lighter than the redcurrant one. It leaves a visible tint in dressings, but disappears in sauces, leaving only fruit and acidity. The consistency is slightly thick, as with all varieties from Talkau.
Those familiar with cherry as a flavoring – in candies, yogurt, or liqueur – will find this vinegar restrained; real sour cherry is quieter. And for salads with very delicate leaves, it is too strong – strawberry or apple are better choices there.
Beef cheeks, radicchio, a splash in a cocktail
Cherry vinegar is at its strongest in savory cooking. Add a splash to the sauce of braised beef cheeks, goulash, or a beef ragout once finished – the cherry gives the dark sauce a fruitiness that otherwise only a good red wine provides. In their recipes, Fruchtwerker demonstrates braised beef cheeks with this vinegar and risotto Milanese; it works just as well with venison loin. A teaspoon in a red wine sauce for duck breast is the quick version.
In salads, it pairs with hearty, bitter greens: radicchio with walnuts, lamb's lettuce with bacon and croutons, or beetroot with goat cheese. The dressing: one tablespoon of vinegar, three tablespoons of walnut or rapeseed oil, salt, pepper. If you prefer it sweeter, don't add honey – the sweetness is already in the vinegar.
As a drink: a splash in mineral water, or in cocktails with chocolate or dark rum, where the cherry acidity balances the drink. A dash in sparkling wine makes a cherry-red aperitif. The red siblings in the assortment are Raspberry & Vinegar and Strawberry & Vinegar – together, the red trio from Fruchtwerker.
Our tip: A teaspoon of vinegar in a chocolate dessert – mousse, brownie, dark ice cream – is the combination that guests ask about most often. Use sparingly, as the acidity is easier to overdo in dessert than in salad.
For barbecue season: a marinade made of three tablespoons of vinegar, two tablespoons of oil, one teaspoon of mustard, and pepper for pork neck or spareribs. Let it marinate overnight, then grill. The acidity makes the meat tender, the sugar caramelizes on the outside, and the cherry remains as fruit in the crust – this is the variety Fruchtwerker uses in its spareribs recipe.
This vinegar is not suitable for light fish dishes or anything intended to retain its color. And for those who want to drink it straight as a shrub, it should be diluted more than the berry varieties – the cherry acidity is more present in the glass than in a salad.
Whole sour cherries, cold-steeped in vinegar for days
The cherries come fully ripe from European harvests – Fruchtwerker strictly avoids fruit from overseas because the origin there remains unverifiable. After the harvest, they are flash-frozen and then steeped cold in vinegar for several days until the color and aroma have passed into the liquid. The fruit remains cold throughout; only after pressing is the liquid boiled down with sugar and bottled.
The fruit content is 25 percent. Conventional manufacturers use concentrate or puree for a cheaper product, while Fruchtwerker uses the whole fruit – with cherries, the difference in taste is particularly clear, as lab-made cherry flavoring rarely tastes like real cherries.
The process originated from the raspberry recipe of the farmer Emma near Ratzeburg, which Matthias Hüttmann took over in 2008. From the first 15-liter pots in Schmielau, it has grown into a factory in Talkau with a 200-liter cooking system, producing around 300,000 bottles a year. The vinegar is a core part of the range – the sour cherry rewards the cold process like almost no other fruit.
The vinegar for braised dishes and dessert afterwards
This vinegar is the variety for people who like to braise and enjoy eating chocolate – and who want to serve both passions with one bottle. It is less well-known than raspberry, but more versatile in the kitchen than its reputation suggests.
As a gift, it suits hobby cooks who already have raspberry vinegar on the shelf and are looking for the next step. Together with redcurrant vinegar, it makes the perfect pair for winter cooking – two dark varieties for roasts, game, and duck.
A cherry vinegar made from sour cherries, cold-steeped in vinegar – for beef cheeks, radicchio, and chocolate mousse.
