Vertical alignment is based off of other inline elements. The best way I've found to vertically align something is to add a psuedo class.
It's easy to vertically align something if you know the dimensions, like some of the other answers have noted. It makes it harder though, when you don't have specific dimensions and needs to be more free.
Basically, the method aligns the psuedo class with the rest of the content to align middle whatever is inside the container.
div#container {
width: 600px;
height: 600px;
text-align:center;
}
div#container:before {
content:'';
height:100%;
display:inline-block;
vertical-align:middle;
}
div#cen {
display:inline-block;
vertical-align:middle;
}