I guess that we can never really get enough vinegar... I met Maria Alvear at the Alimentaria last spring and they wanted us to try their famous PX wine and we were unlike most of the other folks who said yes to a free drink and a small presentation. I did however ask did they have any PX vinegar? They were surprised, but yes, they did. We tried it and it was great! The Alvear story is pretty interesting and also has been entwined in the Pedro Ximenez wine story for some time. I wasn't paying attention in school the day that they told the sherry story so I didn't know that Sherry comes from Jerez and most Pedro Ximenez (sometimes called cream sherry) starts from a region near Cordoba. Montilla is an important PX town and the Alvear bodega has been there since 1729. One only has to read the Big Bob Parker points to see about the Alvear PX wine products. Alvear is still a privately held company with 30 family members as partners and three Alvear still participate in the business.

But let's talk a little bit about "PX". This means made from Pedro Ximenez grapes. The Pedro Ximenez grape is a white grape that is very high in sugar. In order to make the sweet PX wine which is similar to a Port or a Banyuls wine, the grapes are left on the vine to become quite ripe, then they are transferred to mat to further concentrate their flavor. The sweetness comes from this concentration of flavor not any "noble rot". Finally, the grapes are pressed and the production of the wine goes through a sherry like process, being blended over a period of several years. The vinegar PX (sweet) is made from this concentrated wine.