Cornwell’s Vinegar was first produced by brothers John, James and Samuel Cornwell (Jr.) in their brewery in Bourke Street, Waterloo, in Sydney. The brewery had been founded in 1870 as the Castlemaine Brewing, Malting and Wine and Spirit Company, changing its name when it was publicly floated in 1890 to the Australian Brewery and Malting, Wine and Spirit Company Limited.
Vinegar making is a natural extension of the brewing process because it relies on the same base ingredients and fermentation infrastructure. When brewing batches of ale or beer accidentally soured, brewers could redirect that spoiled alcohol to produce malt vinegar (also known as alegar). It has been made since ancient times, with the Babylonians saying that “vinegar is beer that wandered into the kitchen”. Vinegar can also be made from cider, wine, distilled grain alcohol (ethanol) or, in the case of balsamic vinegar, unfermented grape must. Unsurprisingly, the first Cornwell’s vinegar was a malt vinegar.
Although it retained the Cornwell’s brand, the vinegar division soon changed owners. In the early 1900s, the Cornwell brothers sold their brewing interests to the engineering and food manufacturing company, Mauri Brothers and Thomson, which subsequently acquired the subsidiary malting and vinegar business, the Vinegar Company of Australia, in 1907.
Initially, Australian-made vinegars competed against imported brands. Advertising was at pains to point out that Cornwell’s Vinegar was just as good as the imports. The impressive display of Cornwell’s Vinegar at the Sydney Royal Easter Show in 1918 was highlighted in an article in the Sydney Mail and the accompanying text spruiked the benefits of the local product:
Cornwell’s Vinegar stand in the great Hall of Industries was one of the central features amongst a colonnade of exhibits. Here was displayed an impressive exhibition of Cornwell’s pure malt vinegar, vinegars made solely from selected malted grain at the works of the Vinegar Company of Australia, Waterloo, Sydney, the largest vinegar works in the Southern Hemisphere.
For a long time, a prejudice existed against Australian vinegars. They were regarded as inferior to the best English and French products, but a closer acquaintance with Cornwell’s vinegar in thousands of Australian homes has dispelled such a prejudice. Its flavour is excellent and its mellowness is not excelled by the best imported.
The whole process of manufacture is scientifically hygienic, and is under the care of qualified manufacturing chemists. Hence the vinegar produced is wholesome to the most critical consumers. Filtration of the fluid takes place just before bottling, ensuring the wonderful clarity of the liquid. Greater keeping qualities are claimed for Cornwell’s vinegar, as every filled and corked bottle is put through a final process of pasteurisation. The price, too, is lower than that of imported vinegar. It is now firmly established on the market and the demand is increasing daily. This exhibit was pronounced by many commercial men to be one of the best features of the show. Cornwell’s Malt Extract, the old favourite tonic food for children and adults, formed part of the exhibit.
Mauri Brothers and Thomson was bought by the conglomerate Burns Philp in 1982. The ownership of the brands, along with Skipping Girl, subsequently passed to Burns Philp’s former subsidiary, Goodman Fielder. The Champion brand disappeared, while Cornwell’s co-opted the famous Skipping Girl logo as their own. Today, there are some specialty makers of gourmet vinegars but Cornwell’s dominates the mass market in Australia, with a range including cider, white and malt vinegars.