Linguine with Cockles & Vermouth

Interestingly we haven't seen a can or jar of clams in water here, Harrogate. Aren't clams living in the sea around England? On the other hand, we have seen cockles. We thought we could try to make our favorite "Clam Pasta" again with cockles. I found a jar of cockles at a nice local fishmonger, Ramus but the jar said "in vinegar," not "in water." A gentleman in the shop didn't know how strong the vinegar flavor would be. I took a chance and bought a jar, anyway. When I opened the jar, it didn't smell too vinegary. I rinsed cockles with running water throughly. Then, I noticed I didn't have any clam juice. The can of clams that I used to use in the US came with clam juice, which was used as a part of the pasta sauce. I used about 2/3 cup of chicken broth instead, hoping that chicken and cockles were friends. The result was... ahh, vinegary! Rinsing cockles didn't get rid of their vinegar flavor after all. The dish wasn't too bad, though. It was kinda refreshing although it wasn't as good as our usual clam pasta. Is there cockles in water? I have to find it out.