balsamic vinegar

[bawl-som-ik vin-i-ger, ‐-sam‐]

1. a sweetish, aromatic vinegar made from the must of white grapes and aged in wood barrels.

balsamic vinegar

noun

1. a type of dark-coloured sweet Italian vinegar made from white grapes and aged in wooden barrels over a number of years

Word History and Origins

Origin of balsamic vinegar¹

First recorded in 1980–85; translation of Italian aceto balsamico, literally, “restorative vinegar”; so called from its supposed medicinal effects, likened to balsam