THE NOVELTY. A new line of salumi made in the Tuscan hills

Salame, sopressa, salamino,
oh my

For some time now, the Alajmo brothers have wanted to produce their own salumi. At the beginning, Massimiliano came up the recipes for four varieties of cured meat to be made the old-fashion way, with salt and spices. He insisted that neither preservatives nor additives were to be used, as they often alter the flavor and aroma of the meat. Over a year ago, a search began for an artisinal salumi-maker, willing and able to produce and age the meat according to Alajmo standards. After visiting various producers, Max and Raf decided upon a salumi-maker in the Apennine hills of Tuscany with a small farm in Montemercole, near Arezzo. His herd of grey pigs, made up of cross breeds of Large Whites with Cinta Sinese or Mora Romagnola, is raised freely in open pastures with an average of only five animals per hectare. The pigs feed on grass and seasonal fruit from the nearby forest, as well as grain and hay from the farm. Once the pigs are14-months-old or weigh at least 200 kg, they can be slaughtered. The animals must have firm meat with a low level of water in the lean areas. After slaughter, the meat is encased and aged in a cold room with controlled-humidity. Naturally, this requires time: at least three months. During this time, the meat looses around 45% of its original weight, causing the flavors and aromas to become more concentrated. There are no preservatives, color agents, starters, artificial molds, nitrates, nitrites or powdered milk to be found. Absolutely nothing is used to give the final product a little boost in the aging process or make the meat artificially brighter or shinier. Nothing is added to alter the flavor or make up for less-than-excellent raw materials. With salumi this natural, you can taste the care and dedication that went into the production process. The new line of Alajmo salumi includes sorpressa, salame, finocchiona stellata (with wild fennel seed and star anise) and a small salame lightly scented with lavender. Next time you are in the neighborhood, be sure to stop into In.gredienti, our specialty food store, to judge the salumi for yourself.