You were soaking cranberries in vinegar, but they went ahead and fermented? I would go ahead and taste both the fluid and the fruit. See what you think about them. It sounds like the basis for a nice salad dressing. I don't think there is any need to pasteurize. Perhaps you will add a bit of sugar when you make any salad dressing. Were you using it for something else, previously? This sounds very interesting.

Never made it so this is just a guess but I'd go the add more sugar route since you are wanting to mellow it out. Brix/sugar content of the crop varies from year to year so that could explain the change. Adding small amounts at a time rather than trying to make a big change all at once could get it back on track.

Dave

It makes a great salad dressing with no need even for oil... just a sprinkle. I did taste it and it is very vinegary... much more so than normal. Like Balsamic it is also great to cook with. Basically, anything you can do with Balsamic you can do with this vinegar... after it has aged a year or two.

The base is chopped cranberries, white wine and white vinegar, sugar and whole spices.

The foam has now risen to the top and the clear liquid is at the bottom, so I will try to siphon off the clear liquid and see what I have. But you don't think I need to heat to stop further fermentation?

But you don't think I need to heat to stop further fermentation?

Again just a guess but I'd want to get the flavor the best as possible before heating it. Just as with any fermentation, once exposed to heat the process is done and you are left with the taste as-is. Pickles, kraut, mixed veggies, whatever, I always want the desired flavor first and only then stop the process. JMO

Dave

I understand, Dave. Thanks for your ideas.

Kate

I finally decanted the clear liquid at the bottom from the foam layer at the top. I never had the foam before and it's taken over a week for the liquid to totally drain out of the foam.

I added some extra sugar and I'll see what this becomes after further aging.

this is my first try at home made vinegar. i started last sept. with a lot of pear peelings, and added a bit if cider vinegar mother when it smelled more like wine than vinegar. i was afraid to taste it- now the mother( which grew a lot and floated under the surface)has sunk, but there is a lot of something on the surface, not moldy looking, thin and in flakes that stick to the side of the jar. more like yeast growth i've seen under a scope. but i really don't know. the liquid is a bit cloudy and
smells like good vinegar. how can you tell when any "foreign" microbes are absent ? and can you please say at what temp and how long to heat it once it's ready ?
gee, i've got to figure out how to add a picture....