Spain
-- <posted via Mozilla Thunderbird>
Showing posts with label Spain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spain. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
World's costliest ham triggers pork envy
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070818/ap_on_re_eu/food_what_a_ham
By AMANDA RIVKIN, Associated Press Writer
Sat Aug 18, 2:20 PM ET
ALBURQUERQUE, Spain - Spanish cuisine tickles the palate in a thousand ways: ugly but delicious creatures called goose barnacles; boiled octopus with a dash of olive oil and paprika; thick, mushy sausage made from pig's blood.
ADVERTISEMENT
Spaniards are nothing if not dedicated eaters.
Now, hard-core foodies are drooling over the prospect of something truly superlative from Spain, at least in price: a salt-cured ham costing about $2,100 per leg, or a cruel $160 per pound. It's a price believed to make it the most expensive ham in the world.
Don't grab your wallet just yet. And forget about asking for just a slice.
The 2006 Alba Quercus Reserve (as this pricey pork will be known) won't be available until late 2008 and you must buy the whole ham or nothing at all. But that hasn't dissuaded gastronomic Web sites and blogs from buzzing with talk of the farm where it is being produced, likening it to a Mount Olympus of pork.
Its mastermind, Manuel Maldonado, 44, comes from a long line of ham producers in a country that's nuts about the stuff. In bars and restaurants, legs of ham hanging from the wall are as common as TV sets.
But Maldonado is taking the art of the ham to new heights, pampering his pigs with a free-range lifestyle and top-quality diet of acorns before slaughtering them, then curing the meat for two years — twice as long as his competitors.
It's that last step that Maldonado credits with creating a delicacy that justifies the heavenly price.
Maldonado had hoped to roll out his super-gourmet ham this year, but felt the first batch fell short of his ultra-demanding standards and did not put it up for sale. He hopes to do better this time and have it ready around Christmas 2008.
"This is the best ham in the world because it comes from the best pig in the world," Maldonado says of 2006 Alba Quercus Reserve, a reference to the year the pigs were slaughtered.
"It is the most important ham in Spain," adds Pedro Soley, a Barcelona connoisseur who is among the lucky few lining up to buy one. Indeed, this is a limited edition piece: Maldonado will produce just 80 to 100 legs.
And they are expected to be a world apart from Spain's more common Iberian ham — named for the breed of pig used — which is similar to Italian prosciutto, but a darker red and chewier.
For comparison, Italy's finest Prosciutto di Parma and Spain's top-grade Spanish acorn-fed Iberian ham — both savory, umami-rich meats usually served as ultra-thin slices — top out at $30 a pound.
With Spanish pigs bound for ham glory, diet is everything. The least expensive ham is made from pigs fed on grain, whereas mid-grade hams come from pigs raised on a combination of wheat and acorns.
Then there are Spain's poshest pigs, which feast exclusively on acorns, producing a rich flavor and oily texture that make the meat a delicacy. Spain's finest hams are not considered first-rate without an "acorn-fed" stamp on the label.
At least some foodies apparently haven't been put off by the price of Maldonado's work. One food blog, Directo al Paladar, called the cost of the ham "almost a gift," considering how it is made.
Maldonado has yet to set a price for customers who buy the 13-pound hams directly from him, but the food site Ibergour.com has a dozen for sale at $2,100 each, and is accepting $250 deposits.
Is it ridiculous to pay that for a piece of pig?
No, says Maldonado. A ham like this can be shared among 20 people, he notes, whereas a bottle of the finest wine going for the same amount goes down quickly among just a few.
For four generations, Maldonado's family has been making ham from high-quality hogs in this town of 5,000 in Spain's southwest Extremadura region.
Their herds of black Iberian beauties are kept on a handful of acorn-rich farms in the surrounding meadowlands, walking freely up to 6 miles daily without any swineherds to look after them.
After the pigs are butchered, they are cured in high-grade sea salts and refrigerated at 39 degrees. The salt is wiped off after about 12 days. Over the course of the next three months, the temperature is gradually raised to 68 degrees.
The hams then are brought into one of Maldonado's two warehouse-size cellars where they cure for two years, hanging on a series of interconnected hooks from floor to ceiling, like curtains.
Maldonado will only give a ham the top-grade seal if it passes his olfactory test after the curing process. He drives a small rod through the outer layer of fat and into the meat to see if he considers it up to snuff.
In his cellar, Maldonado drew one of the hams close and rubbed his thumbs gently against the smooth roundness of the ham's firm base.
"Ham provides us with life," he said with a smile.
By AMANDA RIVKIN, Associated Press Writer
Sat Aug 18, 2:20 PM ET
ALBURQUERQUE, Spain - Spanish cuisine tickles the palate in a thousand ways: ugly but delicious creatures called goose barnacles; boiled octopus with a dash of olive oil and paprika; thick, mushy sausage made from pig's blood.
ADVERTISEMENT
Spaniards are nothing if not dedicated eaters.
Now, hard-core foodies are drooling over the prospect of something truly superlative from Spain, at least in price: a salt-cured ham costing about $2,100 per leg, or a cruel $160 per pound. It's a price believed to make it the most expensive ham in the world.
Don't grab your wallet just yet. And forget about asking for just a slice.
The 2006 Alba Quercus Reserve (as this pricey pork will be known) won't be available until late 2008 and you must buy the whole ham or nothing at all. But that hasn't dissuaded gastronomic Web sites and blogs from buzzing with talk of the farm where it is being produced, likening it to a Mount Olympus of pork.
Its mastermind, Manuel Maldonado, 44, comes from a long line of ham producers in a country that's nuts about the stuff. In bars and restaurants, legs of ham hanging from the wall are as common as TV sets.
But Maldonado is taking the art of the ham to new heights, pampering his pigs with a free-range lifestyle and top-quality diet of acorns before slaughtering them, then curing the meat for two years — twice as long as his competitors.
It's that last step that Maldonado credits with creating a delicacy that justifies the heavenly price.
Maldonado had hoped to roll out his super-gourmet ham this year, but felt the first batch fell short of his ultra-demanding standards and did not put it up for sale. He hopes to do better this time and have it ready around Christmas 2008.
"This is the best ham in the world because it comes from the best pig in the world," Maldonado says of 2006 Alba Quercus Reserve, a reference to the year the pigs were slaughtered.
"It is the most important ham in Spain," adds Pedro Soley, a Barcelona connoisseur who is among the lucky few lining up to buy one. Indeed, this is a limited edition piece: Maldonado will produce just 80 to 100 legs.
And they are expected to be a world apart from Spain's more common Iberian ham — named for the breed of pig used — which is similar to Italian prosciutto, but a darker red and chewier.
For comparison, Italy's finest Prosciutto di Parma and Spain's top-grade Spanish acorn-fed Iberian ham — both savory, umami-rich meats usually served as ultra-thin slices — top out at $30 a pound.
With Spanish pigs bound for ham glory, diet is everything. The least expensive ham is made from pigs fed on grain, whereas mid-grade hams come from pigs raised on a combination of wheat and acorns.
Then there are Spain's poshest pigs, which feast exclusively on acorns, producing a rich flavor and oily texture that make the meat a delicacy. Spain's finest hams are not considered first-rate without an "acorn-fed" stamp on the label.
At least some foodies apparently haven't been put off by the price of Maldonado's work. One food blog, Directo al Paladar, called the cost of the ham "almost a gift," considering how it is made.
Maldonado has yet to set a price for customers who buy the 13-pound hams directly from him, but the food site Ibergour.com has a dozen for sale at $2,100 each, and is accepting $250 deposits.
Is it ridiculous to pay that for a piece of pig?
No, says Maldonado. A ham like this can be shared among 20 people, he notes, whereas a bottle of the finest wine going for the same amount goes down quickly among just a few.
For four generations, Maldonado's family has been making ham from high-quality hogs in this town of 5,000 in Spain's southwest Extremadura region.
Their herds of black Iberian beauties are kept on a handful of acorn-rich farms in the surrounding meadowlands, walking freely up to 6 miles daily without any swineherds to look after them.
After the pigs are butchered, they are cured in high-grade sea salts and refrigerated at 39 degrees. The salt is wiped off after about 12 days. Over the course of the next three months, the temperature is gradually raised to 68 degrees.
The hams then are brought into one of Maldonado's two warehouse-size cellars where they cure for two years, hanging on a series of interconnected hooks from floor to ceiling, like curtains.
Maldonado will only give a ham the top-grade seal if it passes his olfactory test after the curing process. He drives a small rod through the outer layer of fat and into the meat to see if he considers it up to snuff.
In his cellar, Maldonado drew one of the hams close and rubbed his thumbs gently against the smooth roundness of the ham's firm base.
"Ham provides us with life," he said with a smile.
Friday, June 29, 2007
Monday, June 25, 2007
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Toledo, 5/2007
2007.05.24
@ Toledo
(30 min from Madrid by train)
@ Toledo
(30 min from Madrid by train)
2 gals in a gift shop
waitress in the restaurant that we had late lunch (early dinner)
i took one for jt and i asked him to take one for me
it's quite good as the sky was blue
but my tw friends didnt want to take as he said nobody could tell if the pic was taken in spain or at home
he had his own view but i cant quite share... :)
it's quite in the afternoon
jt
long view
Flamenco
2007.06.05
The Pro
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCTHXg2_zmE
And the amateur...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyBmwQmUOLg
The Pro
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCTHXg2_zmE
And the amateur...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyBmwQmUOLg
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Botin
2007.05.25
Lunch at Botin
(famous for roast suckling pig, and long history)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwdYn1BTAw4
Lunch at Botin
(famous for roast suckling pig, and long history)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwdYn1BTAw4
Monday, June 11, 2007
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Red Pepper
2007.05.28
Handletter for myself... from Madrid... :)
It's quite good.
By the way, I think I'd like these and brought several bottles back. Quite heavy... :)
Handletter for myself... from Madrid... :)
It's quite good.
By the way, I think I'd like these and brought several bottles back. Quite heavy... :)
Thursday, May 31, 2007
EAT EAT EAT @Madrid
Monday, 5/21
See => http://shallwetalk.blogspot.com/2007/05/dinner-521.html
Wednesday, 5/23
Pre-dinner (champion league) => http://shallwetalk.blogspot.com/2007/05/snack.html
JT arrived late in the evening. I booked a table at 10:30pm and we arrived at 11:15pm (we needed to take a bus and subway from hotel to restaurant). They kind of refused to host us as there were about to close at midnight but then I made a table in the first place.
I think this must be the most expensive dinner in the trip, around 40+ euro per head. We ordered sangria (my favorite), mushroom, ham and seafood rice. We finished quickly a bit after 12am.
Thursday, 5/24
My Taiwanese colleague suggested to make a day trip to Toledo. So four of us (together with his wife) went there by train. It's a bit late as we tried to switch room (so that we could use a lower rate booked at internet, instead of company rate). It took quite a while to get a ticket and get on to the train.
It's a nice place. Photos will follow later.
We had early dinner (or late lunch) at 5pm+. Got meat platter, cheese, seafood rice, squid rice.
We went back to the city. JT and I wandered to Plaza Mayor and dropped by a bar. I was attracted by the food and so we sat down for tapas. We got green pepper, sausage and snail, together with beer. They treated us 2 small classes of wine (like medicine) before we left.
I like the green pepper, very much...
It's the same night. I think it's 11pm+. We followed the guide book and went to Victoria Street and tried, white wine, red wine and two types of shrimps. Both dishes were good but I preferred the bigger one as the price was higher and yet it's more abundant.
Friday, 5/25
I tried to book a table to try roast suckling pig (a famous dish) at a famous restaurant (Botin). It's fully booked till 11pm. It was too late before we enjoed the show at midnight. They couldn't make lunch and so I went there with JT.
We ordered sangria, pig & lamb. The roast pig was really great.
It was a late lunch and somehow we didn't explicitly look for a big dinner. We went to the ham store at Victoria street. The first small dish was a free one and came with beer. It's very fatty and chewy.
And then we ordered two types of cured ham and 1 dish of ordinary ham.
Saturday, 5/26
It's the last dinner at Madrid. We tried to re-visit Botin but it's fully booked (not even after 11pm or before say 8pm). The main reason was that JT wanted to have the leg (or hand?) this time. Ended up we went to the same restaurant on Monday. We had sangria, roast pig (JT) and fish in dark sauce (me). The fish was quite good but I preferred pig...
That's all about EAT in Madrid. Will share the scenery ones as well as people and portraits... later...
See => http://shallwetalk.blogspot.com/2007/05/dinner-521.html
Wednesday, 5/23
Pre-dinner (champion league) => http://shallwetalk.blogspot.com/2007/05/snack.html
JT arrived late in the evening. I booked a table at 10:30pm and we arrived at 11:15pm (we needed to take a bus and subway from hotel to restaurant). They kind of refused to host us as there were about to close at midnight but then I made a table in the first place.
I think this must be the most expensive dinner in the trip, around 40+ euro per head. We ordered sangria (my favorite), mushroom, ham and seafood rice. We finished quickly a bit after 12am.
Thursday, 5/24
My Taiwanese colleague suggested to make a day trip to Toledo. So four of us (together with his wife) went there by train. It's a bit late as we tried to switch room (so that we could use a lower rate booked at internet, instead of company rate). It took quite a while to get a ticket and get on to the train.
It's a nice place. Photos will follow later.
We had early dinner (or late lunch) at 5pm+. Got meat platter, cheese, seafood rice, squid rice.
We went back to the city. JT and I wandered to Plaza Mayor and dropped by a bar. I was attracted by the food and so we sat down for tapas. We got green pepper, sausage and snail, together with beer. They treated us 2 small classes of wine (like medicine) before we left.
I like the green pepper, very much...
It's the same night. I think it's 11pm+. We followed the guide book and went to Victoria Street and tried, white wine, red wine and two types of shrimps. Both dishes were good but I preferred the bigger one as the price was higher and yet it's more abundant.
Friday, 5/25
I tried to book a table to try roast suckling pig (a famous dish) at a famous restaurant (Botin). It's fully booked till 11pm. It was too late before we enjoed the show at midnight. They couldn't make lunch and so I went there with JT.
We ordered sangria, pig & lamb. The roast pig was really great.
It was a late lunch and somehow we didn't explicitly look for a big dinner. We went to the ham store at Victoria street. The first small dish was a free one and came with beer. It's very fatty and chewy.
And then we ordered two types of cured ham and 1 dish of ordinary ham.
Saturday, 5/26
It's the last dinner at Madrid. We tried to re-visit Botin but it's fully booked (not even after 11pm or before say 8pm). The main reason was that JT wanted to have the leg (or hand?) this time. Ended up we went to the same restaurant on Monday. We had sangria, roast pig (JT) and fish in dark sauce (me). The fish was quite good but I preferred pig...
That's all about EAT in Madrid. Will share the scenery ones as well as people and portraits... later...
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Reminder
...from woo..
_________
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
Where's my handletter?
_________
It reminds me of something: handletter falls into this category => bad better than none... :)
it's good that woo didn't write in UPPERCASE...
Monday, May 28, 2007
Seven deadly sins of travel
Jet lag effect...
Fishing...
A DEEP one...
2007.05.28
12:38pm
About to head back to the office
Friday, May 25, 2007
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Toledo
2007.05.24
@ Toledo
(30 min from Madrid by train)
@ Toledo
(30 min from Madrid by train)
2 gals in a gift shop
waitress in the restaurant that we had late lunch (early dinner)
i took one for jt and i asked him to take one for me
it's quite good as the sky was blue
but my tw friends didnt want to take as he said nobody could tell if the pic was taken in spain or at home
he had his own view but i cant quite share... :)
it's quite in the afternoon
jt
long view
Snack
2007.05.23 (Day 3)
Afternoon
Dropped by an interesting shop before heading back to hotel for the soccer game. Not sure if ES or Mr. Lo wants a leg...
Got some snack. The wines in the store are inexpensive. Given that I had no clue about different brands, I picked one randomly. Tastes ok...
Afternoon
Dropped by an interesting shop before heading back to hotel for the soccer game. Not sure if ES or Mr. Lo wants a leg...
Got some snack. The wines in the store are inexpensive. Given that I had no clue about different brands, I picked one randomly. Tastes ok...
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Random
2007.05.20 (Day 0)
Random shots in Madrid
@Airport... waiting for my baggage... somehow some clocks were dormant...
Outside the hotel
Chips...
Subway... on the way to Ventas...
Got some drinks... water + beer...
Random shots in Madrid
@Airport... waiting for my baggage... somehow some clocks were dormant...
Outside the hotel
Chips...
Subway... on the way to Ventas...
Got some drinks... water + beer...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)