How To Easily Substitute Champagne Vinegar

Have you ever gotten halfway through a recipe only to realize that you don't have something on the ingredients list? Most of the time, there's an easy substitute that's probably already sitting on your pantry shelf. If you don't have any Champagne vinegar for a vinaigrette or a sauce, don't stress – white wine vinegar is a perfectly good substitute. The quick swap will get you through in a pinch.

Of all the different types of vinegar, Champagne and white wine vinegar have a similar flavor profile and, ultimately, they have the same DNA. All Champagne is made with at least some juice from white wine grapes; it's just aged and bottled differently to create the signature tiny bubbles in Champagne. Champagne vinegar does taste a little less acidic than regular white wine vinegar. It's also typically more expensive, which is why it's not a super common ingredient in most kitchens (or recipes for that matter). The good news is that for almost any recipe that calls for Champagne vinegar, you can swap in white wine vinegar one-for-one and achieve similar results.

For most recipes that call for Champagne vinegar, like a Champagne vinaigrette, you won't normally need more than a tablespoon or two. Mixed with other ingredients at those small concentrations, it's hard to pick up the nuances between Champagne and white wine vinegar. With that said, sometimes straight white wine vinegar can be a little too sour, and your resulting dressing or marinade can be harsh. If you find that the white wine vinegar is making your mouth pucker, all you have to do is add a couple of drops of water to temper the acidity. Mix the water into the vinegar first, then taste it before you use it in a recipe so that you don't go overboard and wash out the flavor.

A bit of sweetness will also cut the harsh acidity of white wine vinegar to bring it more in line with Champagne vinegar, which is fairly mild tasting. Try mixing in ⅛ teaspoon honey or maple syrup into a tablespoon or two of white wine vinegar to mellow things out. Once the reworked vinegar is tasting right, you can use it just like you would use Champagne vinegar, and nobody will be the wiser.