Stam Yayin - Wine Vinegar

QUESTION: Do the rules of stam yayin apply to wine vinegar as well? 

ANSWER: Yes. If a non-kosher wine (stam yayin) fermented and became wine vinegar, it remains forbidden. All the rules regarding non-kosher wine apply to non-kosher wine vinegar as well. According to Shulchan Aruch (which the Sefardim follow) that one may not benefit from non-kosher wine, one may not benefit from non-kosher wine vinegar. Furthermore, according to Shulchan Aruch (YD 134:7) that no level of bitul will apply if non-kosher wine is mixed with kosher wine, the same applies to wine vinegar as well. If even one drop of non-kosher wine vinegar was mixed with grain vinegar, all the grain vinegar becomes forbidden. However, the Rema writes that minhag Ashkenaz is that stam yainom is botel in sixty parts of kosher wine, and the Shach (134:25) maintains that the same applies to wine vinegar. 

In one respect, non-kosher vinegar is more strict than non-kosher wine. If non-kosher wine is mixed with food, all agree that it is batel in sixty parts. However, if non-kosher wine vinegar is mixed with food, it will not be batel until the taste of the vinegar is no longer discernible, even though this probably will require much more than sixty parts. This is because vinegar is “avida l’taama” (strong flavored). Rema (YD 98:8) writes that strong flavored ingredients are not batel even in 1000 parts, so long as they persist to give taste.

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