\nTastings
\n<\/strong>Spain produces 40 million hams each year, of which only half a million come from Iberian pigs, and of those, one-fifth are the very best. And no one knows more about these than this man: since he was 14, he has been handling and slicing ham after ham at his family\u2019s deli counter in La Boqueria. He later earned his MBA and applied it to what he loves most in the world: pure acorn-fed Iberian ham. He hopes we\u2019ll learn as much about ham as we do about wine: its \u201cvintages\u201d\u2014based on the amount of acorns consumed\u2014and the subtle flavor nuances within a single leg of ham. He explains these details beautifully during the tastings he organizes at his shop in Barcelona, Reserva Ib\u00e9rica. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n How many hams have you sliced in your life? Why do I like Iberian ham so much? What is \u201cumami\u201d? Describe that flavor to me. Hmm\u2026 What kind of ham did you just give me? What does a well-sliced slice look like? What do you mean by \u201cexceptional quality\u201d? Isn’t all Iberian ham like that? Can you tell the difference between them? How is exceptional quality achieved? What, exactly? Is that what it means to be a \u201cham refiner\u201d? And how many legs does it get each year? Is Iberian ham well-known abroad? Another slice, please\u2026 Explain why<\/strong>: Is Iberian ham very nutritious? Is this due to the pig’s breed? Really? Can you taste the acorns? Where does your work as a \u201cham tuner\u201d begin? Aren’t most people the ones who do it that way? What are the designations of origin for Iberian ham? Which one is your favorite ham? What’s the best way to enjoy good Iberian ham? And what should I drink with it? What’s your favorite part of the leg? What are those little white dots I sometimes see on the surface of the ham? What’s the best ham you can remember ever tasting? Originally published in La Vanguardia’s “La Contra” section <\/em><\/a> Introduction Iberian ham has a secret: umami. It pairs best with cava or champagne, and it\u2019s best enjoyed freshly sliced. These are some of the key insights that ham affineur Manuel L\u00f3pez shared in 2012 in the back page of *La Vanguardia* with V\u00edctor Amela, which we reproduce below. Manuelo L\u00f3pez: I\u2019m 43 years old….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":23936,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[232],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24391","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-iberian-ham"],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":232,"label":"Iberian Ham"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/experiencias-blog-sociedad-1024x561.webp",1024,561,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"Reserva Ib\u00e9rica","author_link":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/author\/reserva-iberica\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":232,"name":"Iberian Ham","slug":"iberian-ham","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":232,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":7,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":232,"category_count":7,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Iberian Ham","category_nicename":"iberian-ham","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24391","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24391"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24391\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24393,"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24391\/revisions\/24393"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23936"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24391"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24391"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24391"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Latest](\"https:\/\/www.reservaiberica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/sala-prensa-copia-2-scaled-1-1024x561.webp\")
The Interview<\/h2>\n
\n<\/strong>Three a day for 25 years\u2026 That\u2019s about 27,000 hams! Would you like me to cut you a thin slice of this Iberian ham? <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Because it has umami<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>The fifth taste. It was discovered by a Japanese researcher<\/a> studying a certain type of seaweed. <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Beyond salty, sweet, bitter, and sour, it’s addictive\u2026 Try this ham!<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>It\u2019s a unique, truly one-of-a-kind, distinctive flavor: we have a culinary treasure!<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>A slice (cut to perfection) of Iberian ham of the very highest quality.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Sliced very thinly. And short. So it fits whole in your mouth and the fat melts\u2026 What a sin it is not to slice a great ham properly! <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>The ham from an Iberian-breed pig raised on the dehesa, castrated, that has eaten grass and acorns, that has run and trotted, slaughtered at just the right time (January is the best month), and whose leg has been salted, cured, dried in a drying room, and aged in a cellar under the precise conditions\u2026<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>No, because there is \u201crecebo\u201d Iberian ham (raised on pasture, acorn-fed\u2026 and supplemented with feed), there is \u201ccebo de campo\u201d Iberian ham (raised in the countryside, not acorn-fed, and fed only feed), and there is \u201ccebo\u201d Iberian ham (raised in a barn and fed only feed).<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Of course! That’s why the law should clearly distinguish between Iberian ham from the dehesa and industrial Iberian ham. <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Raise an Iberian pig in the dehesa, among holm oaks, feeding it only grass and acorns; slaughter it at the ideal time and cure it under perfect conditions. That\u2019s what I do! <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>I inspect and select the best pieces.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>In France, there are \u201ccheese refiners\u201d who oversee the aging process to produce the best possible cheeses\u2026 I do the same with Iberian ham legs, and that\u2019s how I get the best ones.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>About four thousand\u2014for my business and for export to my partner in Japan.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>It’s not much yet, but as soon as they try it, their faces light up\u2014they’re blown away!<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Here you go\u2026 Iberian ham surpasses the three culinary gems: caviar, foie gras, and truffles.<\/p>\n
\n It surpasses them thanks to its superior flavor nuances and nutritional qualities.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>It is a food rich in B vitamins and antioxidants. Its fat contains oleic acid, the same as in extra virgin olive oil, which helps keep our arteries healthy. This quality sets Iberian ham apart from other hams, such as Serrano and prosciutto. <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Yes, a native breed of pig with genetics that cause fat to mar the meat, making it so flavorful! That fat absorbs and stores the flavors of everything the pig eats. <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Of course! And if there are cork oaks, you can really taste that note. And from the aromatic shrubs, too. I once tried a ham\u2014and I could taste the thyme! I\u2019d eaten too much. <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>I seek out small-scale farmers who lovingly raise their Iberian pigs and the artisanal curing facilities that take great care in the curing process of their hams.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>One-fifth of the 500,000 Iberian ham legs produced each year (on average). And there I go: I feel the legs, oversee their curing\u2026 I\u2019ve felt and sliced so many hams since I was 14 that I know which ones will be really good! <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>There are four: Huelva, Guijuelo, Dehesa de Extremadura, and Valle de los Pedroches.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>It depends\u2026 The one from Huelva (that\u2019s where the Jabugo brand comes from) has notes of nuts; the one from Guijuelo has sweeter notes, like toasted sugar. The one from Extremadura is somewhere in between. <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Freshly sliced. Eaten with your fingers. And you don’t need anything else\u2014ham is the “golden bachelor” of gastronomy, according to Arzak. <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>The best pairing is a glass of cava, which refreshes the palate. Or a small glass of fino or manzanilla\u2014a great regional pairing. Red wine, on the other hand\u2026 is too overpowering on the palate: it doesn\u2019t pair well with Iberian ham! <\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Because of its intense flavor, I like the ham from the tip of the leg that\u2019s closest to the hip bone.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Crystallized amino acids\u2014so good!<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>I was 15 years old. I went on a hike with friends, we stopped to eat in the woods, I took out my homemade ham sandwich, and\u2026 I still haven\u2019t forgotten that amazing taste!<\/p>\n
\n
\n(+download PDF<\/a>)
\nApril 12, 2012 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"