Drinking vinegar, was probably first discovered by the Roman Legionnaires, it appears they accidentally made vinegar, while brewing wine, hence the term sour wine.

Health benefits of brewed vinegar have been known for hundreds if not thousands of years, with folk lore prevailing, the trend of vinegar drinking for health has been passed down through the generations of time and will no doubt continue by word of mouth.

Apple cider vinegar is amazingly so popular, thanks to the efficient methods of marketeers, and the consumers themselves, although little do consumers know, about the real facts of quality vinegars.

My last 4 years, I have dedicated to digging in the muck pile, to discover the truth of vinegars for health and low and behold, apple cider vinegar is rated at the bottom of the drinking vinegar list! Why may you well ask?

Well the main reason is that biotechnology has become a very popular way of understanding the materials used for making vinegars, in this day and age, agricultural chemists develop vinegars, purely for their health benefits, and the traditional apple cider farms are still brewing the traditional apple cider, yuck!
Now this isn't to say apple cider is not good, because it is, for certain ailments, but apple cider vinegar can hardly keep pace, when traditional vinegar makers are not qualified in biochemistry...

Hence todays drinking vinegars, are taking market share from apple cider vinegars, based only on facts, that apple cider vinegar is limited in it's health quality, when compared to Red grape, Cranberry, plum... How can this be, you may well ponder, but common knowledge of the fruits nutrient values are to blame, the higher amount of nutrients, and natural compounds within the fruits, the better, and the longer the fruits are fermented, the smoother the taste of the vinegar.

I suppose one may consider vinegar, non alcoholic wine, because the process of making vinegar, is to follow the wine process and then ferment it again until all the alcohol is fermented away. After 4 years of drinking and researching vinegars, i feel most qualified to call myself a connoisseur of vinegars, and I am quite proud of the fact, that my research and testing of one particular brand, was a great success, when comparing other brands.

"Apple cider vinegar, otherwise known simply as cider vinegar, is made from cider or apple must and has a brownish-yellow color. It often is sold unfiltered and unpasteurized with the mother of vinegar present, as a natural product. It is very popular, partly due to alleged beneficial health and beauty properties. Due to its acidity, apple cider vinegar may be very harsh, even burning to the throat. If taken straight (as opposed to use in cooking), it can be diluted (e.g. with fruit juice, honey, or sugar) before drinking.[3] Others dilute it with warm water and add some honey.[4] There have been reports of acid chemical burns of the throat in using the pill form." Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vinegar

Rice Vinegar is the base material for most Asian vinegars, although specially brewed drinking vinegars, for health would use brown rice, or red yeast rice, firstly because brown rice is abundant with amino acids, and the red yeast rice is called so because of the bacteria, which is grown on the rice. Rice vinegars are much more mellow, than western vinegars, and are better used for drinking health vinegars.
One needs to be very careful when choosing vinegars, due to the fact, that vinegars lack strict controls, especially in some Asian countries and a multitude of additives maybe added, so it is always a wise step, to question the process of brewing.

Rice vinegar is most popular in the cuisines of East and Southeast Asia. It is available in "white" (light yellow), red, and black varieties. The Japanese prefer a light and more delicate rice vinegar for the preparation of sushi rice and salad dressings. Red rice vinegar traditionally is colored with red yeast rice, although some Chinese brands use artificial food coloring instead. Black rice vinegar (made with black glutinous rice) is most popular in China, although it also is produced in Japan (see East Asian black, below). It may be used as a substitute for balsamic vinegar, although its dark color and the fact that it is aged may be the only similarity between the two products.
Some varieties of rice vinegar are sweetened or otherwise seasoned with spices or other added flavorings.

Now to blow the myth of some famous and very expensive vinegars, traditionally manual laboured vinegar production in clay pots, is a very time consuming pass time, but my relative myth blowing is the actual quality and health benefits, like i mentioned early, traditional farmers, brewed vinegar for generations and passed on the methods of fermentation production, however, they are no match for agricultural biochemists, that have studied the art and technology to produce better tasting mother vinegars, with healthier benefits.

Truly superfoods, that are functional drinking vinegar beverages, delivering all the properties and enzymes to enhance the metabolic cycle, using brown rice for amino acids, and fermentation of the fruits, together in the brewing process, not how most Japanese and Chinese traditional brewers make their vinegars.

Obviously to ferment the fruit with brown rice, is better than adding fruit juice, to vinegar, it speaks for itself, so caution is needed, when purchasing health vinegars, make sure the fruits are fermented and not just juice added, after the vinegar is made!