*Use the freshest and highest quality ingredients you can afford- (grow your own or maybe visit a farmers market).

*Be sure the glass containers and lids are thoroughly cleaned before using.

*All vinegars are corrosive, use only cork, plastic, or glass lids.

*Be sure all herbs are free from pesticides and/or chemicals, cleaned and free from bugs, dirt, and any other foriegn materials.

Use individual herbs like tarragon or burnet or develope your favorite herb combinations, allowing not more than 3 tablespoons fresh herb leaves per one quart of vinegar. If garlic is used, crush it and leave it in the jar for only 24 hours. The reason for not overoading the vinegar is that the preservative strength may not be great enough to hold more vegetable matter. Allow 4 weeks for steeping, filter the vinegar with a paper coffee filter, rebottle it in sterilized containers and keep tightly corked.

To make an herb vinegar, put rinsed and dried herbs and any spices into a sterilized bottle and add about 3 cups vinegar, filling to within 1/4 inch of the top. Stop with a new cork and set aside for 2 to 3 weeks to steep. Once filtered and rebottled, the vinegar has a shelf life of at least 1 year.

  With red wine vinegar, use:
4 sprigs fresh curly-leaf parsley
2 Tbsp black peppercorns
  or
2 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley 2 sprigs fresh basil

  With white wine vinegar, use:
4 sprigs fresh tarragon
  or
4 sprigs fresh rosemary

  With rice wine vinegar, use:
4 sprigs fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp dried star anise

FRESH HERB VINEGAR

1 gallon cider or white wine vinegar
2 dozen peppercorns
1 dozen sliced shallots
3/4 cup tarragon
8 sprigs rosemary
8 sprigs thyme
4 branches winer savory
1 sprig chervil
1 well cleaned, unpeeled sliced celeriac root
1/2 cup parsley
1 sliced parsley root

Bottle these ingredients. After 2 weeks, strain the vinegar through cheesecloth or paper coffee filters. Place in sterile bottles and cork tightly.

RED RASPBERRY VINEGAR

Put in a large glazed or stainless steel bowl:
6 quarts red raspberries
cover them with:
1 quart wine vinegar
Let stand in a cool place for about 20 hours. Then strain.
Measure the liquid into an enamel or stainless steel pan and add an equal quanity of:
sugar
Bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes.
Cool and store in tightly lidded sterile jars.

QUICK HERB VINEGAR

Combine:
1 cup well-flavored vinegar: wine or cider
1 teaspoon dried crushed herbs:
basil, tarragon, etc..
You may use this at once with salad oil. You may add 1/2 clove of garlic and fish it out later. Shortly before serving, add:
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 tablespoon chopped chives

You may want to add fresh herb leaves/flowers once you have strained the vinegar and before filling your sterilized jars.

When making an herb vinegar, you can thinly slice lemons and carefully roll the slices and slip them into the jar of homemade vinegar for a nice decorative touch, or perhaps lavender flowers, or chive flowers.... use your imagination, experiment and have fun!