Ten years ago, Cleveland chef Jonathon Sawyer bought a fancy brand of red wine vinegar and found it lacking.

WSJ: Bits & Bites: News You Can Eat

The same went for salt-baked beets: too tough, but beautifully balanced by tart red grapefruit and aged vinegar.

NEWYORKER: Acme

Sample it with traditional Yunnanese dishes such as grilled goat cheese and wood-ear mushrooms braised in vinegar at the restaurant of Yunnan Red Chateau (yunnanhong.cc), about 14 kilometers from the town of Mile, while looking out over 4, 000 hectares of vineyards, touted as the only wine-producing area above 1, 500 meters.

WSJ: Only in...Yunnan