Welcome to
Dry Creek Zinegar
What is Zinegar?
Zinegar is high quality, Italian-style red wine vinegar produced from the finest Zinfandel in the heart of Dry Creek Valley. Sourced from a 58-year-old dry-farmed, head-pruned vineyard, the grapes are natively fermented and the wine is aged in oak barrels. Then slowly transformed into vinegar by a mother, the alcohol converts into acetic acid, and is then aged for four months in oak, producing a balanced, flavorful, non-alcoholic vinegar perfect for everyday kitchen use.
Where to find us...
You can purchase Dry Creek Zinegar at:
Talty Winery in Dry Creek Valley 7127 Dry Creek Rd. Healdsburg, CA
Santa Rosa Certified Organic Farmer's Market-
Wednesdays and Saturdays- 8:30AM- 1PM
50 Mark West Spring Rd.
Santa Rosa, CA
Cloverdale Farmer's Market
Tuesdays- 4-7PM
122 N. Cloverdale Blvd.
or by using the contact box below. Shipping is also available to most states.
About Kathleen
In the late 1800's, Kathleen's family immigrated from Italy to Dry Creek Valley, bringing with them a variety of traditions. One of those traditions, and maybe the most important was the art of Italian cooking. That's where red wine vinegar comes in. Kathleen's grandmother, Elvira (a.k.a. Nonnie) used vinegar in almost every dish during Kathleen's childhood.
Fast forward years later, Kathleen began making her own red wine vinegar, which she dubbed "Zinegar," from an old Italian Zinfandel Vineyard. After years of production for family, friends, and, of course, herself, Kathleen's goal for Dry Creek Zinegar has become to share a piece of her heritage with her local community, as well as enable those that love Italian cooking and fellowship.
Recipes
Chilled Greek Style Tomato Soup
-Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-1 small red onion
-3/4 cup pitted Nicoise olives
-2 Tablsp. oregano leaves
-3 Tablesp. Zinegar
-1 Tablesp. Sherry vinegar
-Kosher salt & fresh ground pepper
-1 Persian cucumber, thinly sliced
-1 Tablesp. honey
-5 fresh tomatoes, cored and quartered
-Feta cheese, cherry tomatoes halved, and baby greens for garnish
Heat 6 Tablesp. oil in medium sauce pan, add onions, olives and oregano cook over low heat until softened. Remove from heat, add olives, both vinegars and season with salt. Cool to room temp.
Meanwhile, toss cucumber with 1/2 teasp. honey and season with salt.
In a food processor, puree tomatoes with 1/2 teasp. honey and season with salt and pepper.
Pour into soup bolls, top with onion-olive mixture, cherry tomatoes, cucumber slices, feta. Garnish with baby greens and serve.
Chimichurri
-1 cup chopped Italian flat leaf parsley or any combo of herbs you have on hand
-8 cloves of garlic, chopped
-2 shallots, chopped
-2 teasp. dried oregano
-2 small red chilis or 2 teasp. red pepper flakes
-6 Tablesp. Zinegar
-2 teasp. salt
-1 teasp. fresh ground black pepper
-1 1/3 cup Extra Virgin olive oil
Add parsley, garlic, shallots, oregano, chilis, Zinegar, salt, and pepper to a food processor and finely mince. Transfer mixture to a small bowl, pour olive oil over mixture. Gently stir and let sit for 15 min. Serve over favorite grilled meats, vegetables, or use as a marinade.
Pantry Barbecue Sauce
Don't buy BBQ sauce when you can make a delicious sauce with just a few ingredients you probably have in your pantry.
Ingredients:
1 TBSP. butter
1/2 cup yellow onion, minced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
2/3 cup Ketchup
1/3 cup Zinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 teasp. Worcestershire Sauce
2 teasp. paprika, smoked or regular
1 teasp. cumin
1 teasp. each salt and cracked black pepper
Sauté onions and garlic in butter until golden brown. Add remaining ingredients and simmer 10-15 minutes. If you like a smooth sauce use an emulsifier or blender to smooth out. Makes about 1 cup of sauce.
Summer Farro Salad
-1 1/2 cups Farro prepare according to manufactures instructions and cool.
-1 lb asparagus trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces, very lightly steamed
-1 small red onion diced
-1 small red bell pepper diced
-8 oz. snap peas
-1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
-6 Tablespoons fresh dill
-1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
-1/4 cup Zinegar, or more to taste
-7 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
To farro add next 6 ingredients. Whisk oil and Zinegar together with salt and pepper to taste. Pour over salad, toss throughly and enjoy.
This dish can be made 3 hours in advance.
(Sometimes I will use 3 Tablespoons of dill and 3 tablespoons of parsley. If I have a lot of green beans I will use those in place of snap peas.)
Chicken Marbella
This recipe was taken from The Silver Palate Cookbook. It is one of my favorite party dishes and this is the season for parties.
The overnight marination is essential to the moistness of the finished product.
This recipe serves 10 but can be easily divided for smaller portions.
-4 chickens quartered or 2 1/2 lbs. chicken pieces (I use chicken thighs)
-1 head of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
-1/4 cup dried oregano
-coarse salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
-1/2 cup Zinegar
-1/2 cup olive oil
-1 cup pitted prunes
-1/2 cup pitted Spanish green olives
-1/2 cup capers with a bit of the juice
-6 bay leaves
-1 cup brown sugar (optional)
-1 cup white wine
-1/4 cup fresh chopped Italian parsley
1. In a large bowl combine chicken, garlic, oregano, S & P, vinegar, olive oil, prunes, capers and juice, olives and bay leaves. Cover and marinade, refrigerate 24 hours. 2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3. Arrange chicken in single layer in one or two large baking pans, and spoon marinade over it evenly. Sprinkle chicken with brown sugar and pour white wine around them. Bake for 50-60 minutes basting frequently with pan juices.
Chicken is done when thigh pieces pricked with fork at their thickest yield clear juice (rather than pink).
With a slotted spoon transfer chicken, prunes, olives and capers to serving platter and spoon some of the pan juices over it. Serve remaining juice is gravy boat. Sprinkle parsley generously over the chicken and serve hot. Enjoy!
Hearty Meat Sauce
1 5 oz pkg. pancetta, diced
1 lb. Italian sausage
1 lb. ground chuck
1 lg. yellow onion, diced
1 lg. bell pepper, diced
1-2 jalapeño pepper, depending on taste
6 cloves garlic, minced
ass. fresh or dried herbs (parsley, sage, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper)
1 28 oz. can San Marzano
1 14.5 can fire roasted tomatoes
3 oz can tomato paste
1 28 oz. jar Raos marinara sauce or homemade sauce
8 oz Talty Zinfandel wine
3 oz Zinegar
Cook pancetta, sausage and beef separately in a large stock pot. Remove meat and discard most of the oil. Add a generous pat of butter. Sauté next 5 ingredients until golden brown. Add next 4 ingredients. Rinse cans and jars with Talty Zinfandel and simmer 1/2 hour. Add Zinegar and simmer 1/2 hour. Taste and adjust seasonings. Enjoy over your favorite pasta and top with grated Parmesan cheese and enjoy with a glass of Talty wine.
Special Salad Dressing and Marinade
I use this dressing for my Italian chopped salad and as a chicken or pork marinade.
This makes about 1 3/4 cups dressing which I keep in the fridge until ready to use.
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup avocado oil
1/2 cup Zinegar or more to taste
2 Tablesp. Malt Vinegar
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 teasp. dried oregano
1/2 teasp. Italian seasoning
1/2 teasp. sugar
salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Enjoy!
Three Bean salad
This is a great salad to have on hand. Add to your tossed green salad or serve as a "stand alone" salad for BBQ's and summer parties.
1 can Red Kidney Beans, rinsed
1 can Garbanzo beans, rinsed
1 1/2 cups green beans, cooked al dente and cut into bite size pieces
3-5 cloves garlic, minced
1 small red onion, diced
Lots of chopped Italian parsley
About 1/2 cup Extra virgin Olive Oil 1/2 About 1/4 cup or more Zinegar, to taste
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper, to taste
Mixed well and let marinade for at least 3 hours or overnight in the refrigerator. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.
Italian Chopped Salad
A family favorite! This is my usual recipe, however it can change with what's in the fridge. Don't be afraid to experiment!
A combo of Romaine and Iceberg lettuce, chopped
Red Bell Pepper and Red Onion, diced
Celery and Black Olives sliced
Carrots, shredded
A generous scoop of Three Bean Salad
Italian Parsley, chopped
Sliced Dry Salami, cut in ribbons
A generous handful of shredded Mozzarella cheese
Toss with Special Salad Dressing and top with slices of tomatoes and hard boiled eggs. Optional Items: sliced button mushrooms, diced cooked bacon or pancetta, sliced beets.
Panzanella Salad
This is a very Italian salad to make in the summer with all the fresh veggies and tomatoes available. Also, a great way to use stale bread.
I start with mixing extra virgin olive oil and Zinegar in a glass bowl. Add salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste.
You will need:
cherry tomatoes, halved
regular tomatoes, cut into chunks or a combo of both
red onion, celery and cucumber, diced
1-2 day old sourdough bread sliced and I like to dry it out further by placing the slices on a cookie sheet in a 300 degree oven until fairly hard. Crumble into pieces about the size of a quarter. You can use homemade croutons as well.
Toss all ingredients into the dressing and let stand about 20 minutes for the flavors to marinate. Serve and enjoy!
Watermelon and Tomato Salad with Feta cheese
This is a wonderfully refreshing summer salad to serve during the peak of melon season instead of a regular tossed green salad. Simple, with few ingredients and can easily sit for an hour and still be fabulously delicious.
Depending on the size of salad that you are making I will give you the ingredients and then it's up to you to decide on the quantity.
Watermelon cut into bite sized chunks
Cherry tomatoes, halved and I use almost an equal amount as the watermelon
Red Onion, thinly sliced
Cucumber, seeded and cut into small chunks
Feta cheese, a generous amount
EVOO and Zinegar to taste ( I use about 1/2 cup EVOO to 1/3 cup Zinegar, but I like vinegar)
Toss with a chiffonade of basil and mint!
Allowing it to sit for a few minutes before serving. This will give the ingredients an opportunity to meld. Enjoy!!!!
Caponata
This is a classic Sicilian appetizer or side dish. It is typically used as a topping for bruschetta but can also be a great sandwich spread or on grilled fish.
1 1/2 lb. eggplant ( I use Globe or Sicilian)
cubed and roasted
2 Tablesp, EVOO
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
3-6 cloves of garlic, minced
2 red bell peppers, diced
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lb. ripe tomatoes, preferably Romas, seeded and chopped
3 heaping Tablesp. capers
3 Tablesp, coarse chopped green olives
a pinch of sugar or a bit of honey
3 Tablesp. Zinegar, or more to taste
fresh ground pepper and crushed red pepper to taste
Toss eggplant in a bowl with salt and olive oil, roast at 400 degrees for 45 or so minutes until nicely toasted. Meanwhile, saute onion, celery, garlic, bell peppers in olive oil until lightly carmelized.
Salt and Pepper to taste
Add eggplant and tomatoes and simmer for 20 minutes.
Add capers olives, Zinegar, honey or sugar, fresh ground pepper and crushed red pepper to taste (optional)
Allow to marinade overnight and serve at room temperture. Enjoy!!1
Testimonials
Here's what people have said about Dry Creek Zinegar
Dry Creek Zinegar is the best red wine vinegar, hands down! The balance of flavor and mild acidity makes it the perfect condiment to brighten up any sauce, soup, or dressing. Dry Creek Zinegar is the secret ingredient in my tomato jam that we serve on our signature BLT sandwiches. Adding a splash of Zinegar to our soup of the day perfectly highlights the fresh ingredients. You'll be amazed at its versatility and it will elevate your cooking. Dry Creek Zinegar is a must-have for your pantry!
If you want to put a little zing in your food and life, try Zinegar by Kathleen Ponzo. Best red wine vinegar I have ever used.
Contact Us
If you are interested in purchasing Zinegar, you may call or text 707-955-0013, or fill out the form below to send a direct email.