Fruit Vinegar
Fruit vinegar is vinegar produced by the alcoholic and subsequent acetous fermentation of fruit juice or fruit must other than grape. The category covers pear, peach, mango, persimmon, pineapple, berry and citrus vinegars, and in most markets the name of the fruit must appear with the word vinegar, since the substrate is the whole point of the product.
Acetic acid remains the functional component, typically 4 to 6 percent in table strength material, but fruit vinegar is bought for what surrounds it. Residual sugars, fruit organic acids such as malic, citric and quinic, polyphenols and a set of volatile esters and terpenes carried through from the fruit give each type a distinct aroma and a rounder, less aggressive sourness than distilled vinegar. Colour ranges from near colourless in pear to deep red in berry types.
The liquid is fully miscible with water, has a pH generally between 2.8 and 3.6, and is somewhat less shelf stable than spirit vinegar because the sugar and phenolic content supports slow browning and, in unpasteurised material, continued microbial activity. The volatile fruit aroma is easily lost on heating, so fruit vinegar is normally added late in a process or used cold, where its flavour rather than its acidity is doing the work.
We source bulk Fruit Vinegar from top China manufacturers for our partners. The manufacturer is in Henan. A smaller requirement can ship in a combined container with other ingredients.
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- Function
- Acidulant
Specifications
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Appearance | Clear to lightly hazy liquid, free from foreign matter |
| Odour and Flavour | Characteristic fruit vinegar, free from off notes |
| Total Acidity as Acetic Acid | 5.0 percent minimum, table strength |
| pH | 2.8 to 3.6 |
| Residual Alcohol | Not more than 0.5 percent by volume |
| Total Soluble Solids | 2.0 to 8.0 degrees Brix, fruit dependent |
| Sulphur Dioxide | Not more than 10 mg per kg |
| Patulin | Not more than 50 micrograms per kg for pome fruit types |
| Lead | Not more than 0.5 mg per kg |
| Arsenic | Not more than 0.2 mg per kg |
| Total Plate Count | Not more than 100 cfu per mL, pasteurised grade |
| Yeast and Mould | Not more than 50 cfu per mL, pasteurised grade |
| Escherichia coli | Absent in 10 mL |
| Salmonella | Absent in 25 mL |
Common Markets Grades
Acidity is the first trading parameter, with table grades at 4 to 6 percent acetic acid and manufacturing concentrates at 10 percent or above. Beyond that the market divides on fruit type, on whether the vinegar is made from pressed juice or from reconstituted concentrate, and on whether it is filtered and pasteurised or sold raw and unfiltered with the mother intact.
Residual sugar and total soluble solids are specified alongside acidity, because they determine how the vinegar behaves in a dressing or a reduction, and colour is specified for the darker fruit types where it contributes to the finished product. Organic certification is a common differentiator in this category, since fruit vinegars sell heavily into the natural and speciality trade. A spray dried powder carried on maltodextrin is also produced for dry seasoning use, and a smaller trade exists in fruit vinegar drinking concentrates blended with juice and sugar for the beverage market.
Applications
- Vinaigrettes and salad dressings, where the fruit aroma allows a lower oil ratio without the dressing tasting harsh
- Marinades for pork, poultry and game, combining tenderising acidity with a fruit note that survives the cook
- Chutneys, fruit relishes and preserves, as the acid that complements rather than competes with the fruit base
- Reduction glazes and finishing sauces, where residual sugar allows the vinegar to concentrate to a syrup
- Pickled fruit and vegetable packs, giving a sweeter, less sharp brine than spirit vinegar
- Drinking vinegars, shrubs and switchels, where the product is diluted and consumed as a beverage
- Sushi rice and Asian seasoning bases, using rice adjacent fruit types for a milder acidity
- Dairy and dessert applications, particularly with soft cheese and fruit, in the restaurant trade
- Seasoning powders and snack coatings, using the spray dried grade for fruit and vinegar profiles
China Manufacturers of Fruit Vinegar
Top Fruit Vinegar manufacturers in China.
Company names and logos are the property of the manufacturers themselves. They are listed here because our own directory records them as producing this ingredient. A listing is not an endorsement by them, and we do not represent them or speak on their behalf.
Regulatory Status
Fruit vinegar is regulated as a food rather than as a food additive, so it carries no E number and is declared on labels by name. In the United States the Food and Drug Administration has no standard of identity for vinegar but sets out its labelling expectations in a compliance policy guide, under which a product sold as vinegar must contain at least 4 grams of acetic acid per 100 millilitres and must be named for the substrate it was actually made from, so a product called pear vinegar has to be the product of pear juice fermentation.
In the European Union vinegar is covered by general food law and by national compositional provisions rather than by an additive listing, and the name of the fruit is similarly reserved for vinegar genuinely made from that fruit. Codex Alimentarius addresses vinegar in a regional standard that sets minimum acetic acid content, defines the permitted raw materials and reserves the descriptive names, and production is subject to the general Codex codes of hygienic practice. Where sulphur dioxide is carried over from the fruit or added during processing it must be declared as an allergen above the usual threshold.
Manufacturing Process
The route follows the two stage vinegar process, with the fruit handling at the front determining most of the character. Fruit is washed, sorted to remove damaged material, and milled or pulped. Depending on the fruit, pectinase is added to break down the pectin and improve juice yield before pressing, and the juice may be settled or centrifuged to remove pulp. Where the plant is remote from the growing area the process starts instead from fruit juice concentrate diluted back with water.
The juice is adjusted for sugar and nutrients if necessary, then inoculated with Saccharomyces cerevisiae and fermented anaerobically until the sugars are converted to roughly 5 to 9 percent ethanol. The fermented liquid is racked off the yeast lees or coarsely filtered.
Acetous fermentation follows, carried out by Acetobacter and related acetic acid bacteria. Industrial volume runs in submerged acetators where air is dispersed through the liquid under close control of temperature and dissolved oxygen, converting a batch in one to three days; slower surface and generator methods are retained where a more aromatic result is wanted. The raw vinegar is aged briefly in tank or wood, clarified by settling, fining or membrane filtration, standardised to the target acidity with water, and pasteurised before filling. Raw grades skip pasteurisation and are only coarse filtered.
