Frequently Asked Questions

Pome is an Oregon vinegar maker focused on traditional apple cider vinegar made from cider apples, native fermentation, slow acetification, and extended aging.

We approach vinegar much like a cidermaker approaches cider or a winemaker approaches wine. The variety of fruit matters. The fermentation matters. The vessel matters. And time matters.

Our goal is not to make vinegar as quickly or cheaply as possible. It is to see how good apple cider vinegar can be when the process begins with the right apples and is allowed to develop slowly.

Pome vinegar is produced and bottled in Oregon.

Our roots are in the northern Willamette Valley, where founder Galen Williams began growing traditional cider apple varieties in 2010 and spent years learning which varieties perform well in Oregon and which produce the most interesting cider.

That work with cider fruit and fermentation eventually became the foundation for Pome. The longer version is on Our Story.

It starts with the apples.

Much of the apple juice produced in the United States comes from dessert and juicing varieties selected to be sweet, mild, and pleasant to eat.

We intentionally use traditional cider apples, including bittersweet and bittersharp varieties selected for fermentation. These apples can contain considerably more tannin and bring bitterness, astringency, acidity, aroma, and structure that are difficult to obtain from conventional dessert fruit.

We then ferment the juice into cider, convert that cider slowly into vinegar, and allow our vinegars time to mature before bottling.

Yes.

We begin with apple juice, ferment the natural sugars into cider, and then perform a second biological conversion in which acetic acid bacteria transform the alcohol in the cider into acetic acid.

That means the path to every bottle is:

Apples → Juice → Cider → Vinegar

We do not begin with industrial acetic acid and add apple flavor to it.

For us, raw vinegar means keeping the finished product close to the living vinegar that developed during fermentation and aging. We do not pasteurize or use chemical stabilizers like sulfates or sorbates.

Our vinegar is not designed to be a perfectly clear, standardized industrial ingredient. Natural sediment, haze, and material associated with the vinegar culture may be present.

Those variations are normal in traditionally made vinegar.

Yes. Our apple cider vinegars are bottled unfiltered.

That means you may see natural sediment or cloudiness in the bottle. The appearance can change over time, particularly because vinegar is an agricultural and fermented product rather than a chemically standardized beverage.

Our traditional apple cider vinegars are bottled undiluted rather than being intentionally reduced with water after fermentation to create a standardized flavor.

Because vinegar is naturally fermented, each batch can develop somewhat differently. Check the individual bottle for its stated acidity.

Our apple cider vinegar is produced to meet the acidity stated on the bottle. Our current traditional apple cider vinegars are labeled at a minimum of 5% acidity.

Acidity and flavor are related, but they are not the same thing. Two vinegars with similar measured acidity can taste very different depending on the apples, fermentation, tannins, aging, and other compounds present in the vinegar.

The Orléans method is a traditional approach to vinegar making in which cider is slowly converted into vinegar in contact with oxygen.

Acetic acid bacteria live primarily where the liquid has access to air. Rather than forcing large amounts of oxygen through the cider to accelerate production, we allow acetification to proceed more slowly.

It takes more time, but time is part of what we are trying to preserve. The full sequence is on Our Method.

Yes.

Our cider begins with native yeast fermentation rather than relying entirely on a single selected commercial yeast strain.

Native fermentation often proceeds as a succession. Some yeast species become active early in fermentation but tolerate very little alcohol. As conditions change, those populations decline and other yeasts that are better suited to the higher alcohol environment become more important.

The population that begins a fermentation is not necessarily the population that finishes it.

Acetic acid bacteria perform the second transformation.

These bacteria are aerobic, meaning they require oxygen. They oxidize the ethanol produced during cider fermentation and convert it primarily into acetic acid.

This process is called acetification.

The mother is a visible biofilm associated with the acetic acid bacteria converting cider into vinegar.

It often forms as a thin layer across the surface of the liquid, where oxygen is most readily available. Over time, a mother can become surprisingly thick.

Eventually it may become heavy enough to sink or may be disturbed and drop below the surface. When that happens, another mother can form above it.

In long fermentations, multiple generations of mother can accumulate in the same vessel. There is more on this in The Cellar.

Natural material associated with vinegar fermentation can sometimes form or become visible after bottling.

That is normal for a raw, unfiltered vinegar.

Its presence does not mean the vinegar has spoiled.

We use both stainless steel tanks and barrels throughout fermentation, acetification, and aging.

Different Pome vinegars may follow different paths through the cellar.

Stainless steel is neutral and allows the fruit and fermentation to remain the primary influence. Oak can add another dimension through contact with wood, slow oxygen exposure, and extended maturation.

It depends on the vinegar.

We do not design our process around a fixed production schedule. Alcoholic fermentation must finish, acetification must proceed, and the vinegar must then be given the time appropriate for that particular product.

Some of our vinegars spend years developing before bottling.

Our Barrel Aged vinegar, for example, is aged for approximately three years, and we expect to explore even longer aged releases in the future.

A cider apple is an apple valued specifically for fermentation rather than primarily for fresh eating.

Many traditional cider varieties would seem unusual to someone accustomed to supermarket apples. Some are small. Some are very acidic. Some are intensely bitter or astringent.

Those characteristics can be undesirable in an eating apple but extremely valuable in fermentation. More on the fruit is on Heritage Apples.

Bittersweet cider apples are generally high in tannin with relatively lower acidity.

Their bitterness and astringency can make them less appealing as eating apples, but those same characteristics contribute structure, body, and complexity to cider and vinegar.

Bittersharp apples combine relatively high tannin with higher acidity.

They can contribute both structure and brightness, which makes them particularly valuable in traditional cider making.

Tannins are naturally occurring plant compounds belonging to the broader family of polyphenols.

They occur in apples as well as grapes, berries, tea, cocoa, and many other plants.

Tannins contribute sensations such as bitterness and astringency. They are also among the plant compounds widely studied by researchers for antioxidant activity and other biological properties.

Pome vinegar is a food, not a medicine, and we do not claim that our vinegar prevents or treats disease. We are interested in tannins because they are a naturally occurring part of traditional cider fruit and because we believe the chemistry of the apple matters.

Cidermakers often describe tannins according to the way they are perceived.

Hard tannins tend to present themselves more as bitterness.

Soft tannins tend to be experienced more as astringency, the drying or puckering sensation you might recognize from black tea or a structured red wine.

Traditional cider varieties can provide different combinations of these characteristics.

Our use of traditional cider fruit gives us good reason to expect a different tannin profile from vinegar made primarily from conventional dessert and juicing apples.

But we do not want to rely on expectation alone.

We have our vinegars independently analyzed and compare the results against a leading nationally distributed apple cider vinegar. The figures are published on Tannins and Testing.

The actual laboratory results are more important to us than simply putting the words “high tannin” on a label.

Yes.

We use independent third party laboratory testing to evaluate our vinegars.

Each year we test our batches and use a leading national apple cider vinegar as a benchmark so we can see whether the differences we expect from our fruit and process remain measurable in the finished vinegar.

Agricultural products naturally vary from vintage to vintage, which is exactly why we believe testing should be repeated rather than relying indefinitely on a single favorable result.

However good vinegar makes sense in your kitchen.

Pome can be used in vinaigrettes, marinades, sauces, shrubs, pickles, vegetables, soups, beans, and anywhere acidity can bring balance to a dish. Our recipes are a starting point.

Because our vinegars are made for flavor rather than simply acidity, we also encourage tasting them side by side. Different apples, aging programs, fruit additions, and vessels can produce noticeably different vinegars.

Vinegar is highly acidic, so we do not recommend drinking it straight.

If you choose to use vinegar in a beverage, dilute it substantially with water or another liquid and use it as a food ingredient.

Anyone with a medical condition, dietary restriction, medication concern, or specific health goal should speak with an appropriate healthcare professional rather than relying on vinegar as a treatment.

You can.

Because Pome is raw and unfiltered, natural material may settle toward the bottom of the bottle.

Shaking distributes that material through the vinegar. Leaving it settled is also perfectly fine.

No.

Vinegar’s acidity makes it naturally shelf stable under normal storage conditions.

Keep the bottle tightly closed and store it away from excessive heat and direct sunlight.

Properly stored vinegar is extremely stable.

Over time, however, a raw vinegar may continue to change visually. Sediment may increase, a film or mother may develop, or the vinegar may become cloudier.

Those changes are not necessarily signs of spoilage. They are often simply evidence that this is a minimally processed fermented product.

Because apples and fermentation are not perfectly standardized.

Variety, harvest conditions, fermentation, aging, and natural microbial activity can all influence a batch.

We want consistency in quality, but we do not believe quality requires eliminating every sign of agricultural variation.

A bottle of Pome should taste like a carefully made vinegar, not like a chemically standardized commodity.

Our Bittersweet Apple Cider Vinegar emphasizes traditional bittersweet cider fruit.

These apples are particularly valued for their tannins and fermentation character rather than their suitability for fresh eating.

The result is a vinegar built around the qualities we originally sought when planting cider orchards in Oregon.

Our Barrel Aged vinegar spends approximately three years developing in the cellar.

Oak aging gives time for the vinegar’s acidity, fruit character, fermentation compounds, and wood influence to integrate.

Some of the oak barrels we use previously held Oregon Pinot Noir, giving those vessels a history in the Willamette Valley before they ever held vinegar.

Our Marionberry vinegar combines apple cider vinegar with Oregon marionberry character.

Marionberries bring dark berry fruit, color, acidity, and their own naturally occurring plant compounds to the finished vinegar while keeping traditional cider vinegar at the foundation.

If you want the clearest expression of traditional cider fruit, start with Bittersweet.

If you are interested in extended aging, oak, and deeper cellar character, start with Barrel Aged.

If you prefer something more fruit driven, start with Marionberry.

Or taste them together. Comparing them side by side is one of the best ways to understand how much the raw material and cellar treatment can change a vinegar.

Our core Pome vinegars are offered in 8 oz and 16 oz bottles.

Availability can vary by vinegar and release.

Yes.

Our tasting collections are designed to let you compare Bittersweet, Barrel Aged, and Marionberry side by side.

Collections are available as three 8 oz bottles or three 16 oz bottles.

Yes.

Orders of $60 or more ship free within our eligible shipping area. The details are on Shipping and Returns.