The Palio di San Giovanni

Every Modenese with a passion for traditional Balsamic vinegar is convinced in their hearts that they have the best vinegar in the world in the attic of their homes and that no one else can match it.

In June 1967, the organising committee of the Fiera di San Giovanni, Spilamberto's patron saint's fair, came up with the idea of displaying Natural Balsamic Vinegar - later converted to Traditional Balsamic Vinegar - among the typical local products, and of announcing and organising a competition between local producers of the precious vinegar. And so, starting from that year, the competition that soon became known as the Palio di San Giovanni began.

The Palio is organised every year by the Consorteria dell'Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale (Traditional Balsamic Vinegar Consortium), a cultural association based in Spilamberto, which for more than half a century has been preserving and disseminating the 'savoir-faire' and the culture linked to the production of Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena.

During the months of February or March, anyone can bring a 250ml sample of their vinegar to the Consorteria, participate in the Palio and receive valuable advice from the Masters, the world's leading Balsamic experts. Only vinegars produced in the area of the ancient Este domains according to centuries-old tradition, however, can compete for victory.

The competition has been held for more than half a century and now sees the participation of more than 1,500 families. The path that leads a vinegar to be proclaimed the best of the year is long and demanding. The evaluations concern the visual, olfactory and taste standards of the product. After an initial selection in the elimination stages, the tasting sessions for the quarterfinals continue, during which the 72 best vinegars of the season are identified, advancing to the semifinals and eventually the 12 finalists. Reaching the semifinals alone is a source of pride; those who manage to do so for three consecutive years without ever making it to the finals are awarded a set of five barrels as a prize.

Before the last tastings, each of the finalists receives a visit from the inspectors, Masters of the Consorteria charged with verifying the regularity of the battery and the correspondence of its precious contents with the sample presented in the competition. It is an exciting moment, the heart beats fast in the throat and the legs tremble. If everything is considered to be in line with the rules, then the vinegar is admitted to the coveted final. On the first day of the Fair, a group of selected Master Tasters meets to examine the final dozen. The samples tasted remain anonymous until the following Sunday, the day of the award ceremony. Until then, nobody knows the name of the winner.

In the picturesque setting of the Rangoni Fortress Square, at sunset, all twelve finalists receive a diploma and a medal as prizes, and the first-place winner is also awarded a golden spoon. In truth, the winner of the Palio wins a prize of inestimable value: being able to tell everyone that his vinegar is the best! At least for that year.