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Story: Four-legged olive trees

Four-legged olive trees

Four-legged olive trees

Story

The Ingredient

Cerdo Ibérico de Bellota are pigs that spend their lives trotting through oak groves, where they are free to feed on grasses, herbs and acorns. Not only is their meat delicious but also rich in unsaturated fats.

It’s a cold, damp December morning in Extremadura, Spain, near the small medieval town of Badajoz. As the veil of darkness lifts, the hilly grove of old holly oaks and cork oaks that lies beyond becomes visible. A low grunting can be heard, broken only by the sounds of chomping and cracking. A small drift of cerdo Ibéricos de Bellota is making light work of the acorns strewn across the ground. Their Montanera, as the expedition through the oak groves of the dehesa is known, has just begun. The bulk of the acorns are still hanging on the trees.

Bellotas make the difference

Bellotas make the difference

Carlos Tristancho whacks his stick against the branches, making it rain dark-brown acorns. Grunting and squealing, the pigs devour them. The 65-year-old lives on the Finca Cantillana, part of the 500-hectare Pais de Quercus. He is a champion for this programme that biodynamic farmers from Dehesa have initiated. They have declared their support for the slow food movement and natural production conditions. With their Cerdo Ibéricos de Bellota and the resulting air-dried jamón, also known as Pata Negra ham, their success has made a name well beyond Spain’s borders.

The secret is nutrition and exercise

The secret is nutrition and exercise

“This ham’s subtle, delicately nutty flavour is down to the healthy combination of nutrition and exercise,” says Carlos Tristancho. Cerdo Ibéricos live in natural surroundings practically all year round and graze on grasses, herbs and acorns. Especially the latter: during the winter months, they consume masses of them, amounting to around seven kilos per day. Because they roam over a gigantic area and the trees are far apart from one another, they are forced to trot for kilometres to do so. “This enables the oil from the acorns to work its way into the fine vessels in their muscles, which alters the profile of fatty acids,” Carlos explains. When they arrive in Montanera at the beginning of February, 70 kilos in body weight won’t be the only thing they have gained: “Their unsaturated fats are of the highest quality – they are like walking olive trees,” he says.

Climate, technology and experience

This nutrition, based on the best-possible, natural raw ingredients, is largely responsible for the fine flavours that infuse the ham. But there are other factors: the ham is cured according to a refined system of perfect climatic conditions, modern technology, experienced craftsmanship and the highest quality standards. After slaughter, the meat is cooled to 0°C, graded, and enveloped entirely in a salt crust. This is the beginning of the curing and preservation process, which takes place at temperatures between 0° and 5°C and at a relative humidity of 70 to 90%. During this maturing phase, the hams begin to take on their flavour and characteristic colour. A further salt rub ensures the salt is evenly distributed and can work its way into the pores of the tissue.

Video

Maturation without a temperature shock

After being brushed and washed, the hams are allowed to rest for 60 days at temperatures between 0° and 6°C with high humidity levels of 70 to 90%. They are then moved to dry rooms between 6 and 16°C, where they are left for 90 days and lose 60 to 80% in weight. These are natural dry rooms with windows through which rays of light can shine, adjustable blinds and continually regulated air-flow to ensure optimum ventilation. Because during what is called the sweating process, the ham’s temperature needs to be allowed to rise slowly in a controlled manner in order to avoid a temperature shock. This enables the flavour-infused fat to melt into the muscle tissue.

A pound will set you back a few pounds

In the next step, the temperature is raised again, as high as 26°C, to allow the flavours to develop. This stage also lasts 90 days. The final microbiological touches are made during the final phase, lasting up to 365 days. Warm daytime temperatures and cool nights round off the flavour. By the time they are finished, the jamóns have up to four years of treatment behind them, not including the pigs’ 20-month lifetime. It should come as no surprise that such high quality craft comes at a price: an 8.5kg joint of cerdo de Ibérico de Bellota comes in at €450.

Quality control with all the senses

Quality control with all the senses

Carlos Tristancho places a long, sharpened screw on the ham and twists it to remove a miniscule piece, while his thumb squeezes and massages the meat. An act that brings all his sensory organs into play: “During maturation, we check on the quality almost daily,” he says. And now it’s time for the big moment: an Iberian ham from acorn-fed pigs fit for kings is sliced, as Carlos lays out slices of meat as thin as air on a sheet of film. An unimaginably soft, finely seasoned and gently nutty flavour spreads across the palate. Simply divine.

The most beautiful corner of Earth

The most beautiful corner of Earth

And it’s all thanks to the protected nature reserve, or dehesa, the animal paradise that is a habitat for millions of birds, many of which come to overwinter, and farm animals alike: “The dehesa is one of the world’s last natural pantries for healthy food,” says Carlos Tristancho. He should know – after all, he grew up here. As we find out over a glass of wine, in a previous life he was an actor, and a rather famous one at that: he worked with Pedro Almodóvar, the great Spanish director; Carme Maura; Klaus Kinski; and Harvey Keitel. Celebrities such as Madonna were regular guests and for a time he was the artistic director of a large theatre festival in Mérida. But the time came when these dizzy heights lost their attraction. He wanted to return to his home, where he bought an old convent in the dehesa. He made it into a restaurant and hotel that acts as a meeting point for everyone who shares his passion for nature and exquisite food. There, he got to know José Maria Monteagudo, founder of Pais de Quercus. They became friends and partners. “The dehesa,” says Carlos, “is a unique ecosystem that I feel with every pore of my body; I recognise every smell, flavour, sound. For me, it’s the most beautiful spot on the planet.”

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