A sour-tasting seasoning and preservative that has been around as long as wine. If not prevented, it will always turn into vinegar in the end. This was already used in ancient times mixed with other ingredients as a drink. Hippocrates (460-377 B.C.) already reported its medicinal use for respiratory diseases and digestive complaints. The Roman author Columella (1st century) reports in his work "De re rustica" about the production of vinegar from figs, barley and wine. Vinegar has played a role in many cultures. The Bible mentions vinegar as a staple food, the Egyptians had "Hequa" (vinegar drink made from barley beer), the Babylonians used vinegar water as a refreshing drink, the Phoenicians made their sour Shekar from cider, the Greeks used it in sacrificial ceremonies, the Roman legionaries protected themselves from colds with Posca (vinegar water) and in Japan the traditional Tamago-Su (rice vinegar) is known, in which a raw egg is dissolved. In the Middle Ages, herbal vinegar was considered a remedy, as reported by Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) and Nostradamus. Plague vine gar was used against the plague.
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Dominik Trick
Technischer Lehrer, staatl. geprüfter Sommelier, Hotelfachschule Heidelberg