Ham hits shelves with $2,940 price tag

[The Straight Story]

Ham hits shelves with $2,940 price tag

LONDON, Jan. 18 (UPI) -- Officials with a London store said they are selling a specially prepared 15.43-pound ham for $2,940 -- believed to be the world's highest price tag for ham.

Andrew Cavanna, fresh food buyer for Selfridges, said the legs of Iberico ham come from 50 pigs specially chosen by farmer and ham expert Manuel Maldonado, The Sun reported Monday.

The pigs roam in Spain's Extramadura region, eating a special diet of acorns and roots, before they are slaughtered and the salted ham is cured for three years.

The ham comes in handmade wooden boxes, decorated with tailor-made aprons, and comes with a DNA certificate as proof of its authenticity.

"Connoisseurs will appreciate the melt-in-the-mouth texture of this truly amazing Spanish ham," Cavanna said. "The leg may seem to have a large price tag but when you think about the amount of care taken from breeding right through to the curing, it is actually amazing value."

http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2010/01/18/Ham-hits-shelves-with-2940-price-tag/UPI-34301263849301/

[damntexdem]

1. What? At that price, no eggs included?

Well, it only goes to show that there are other pigs involved besides those that went into the ham.

In fact, this smacks of cannibalism. ;-)

[aikoaiko]

2. That's only $200/lb which is not so bad given the price of, say, a good bottle of wine.

and other culinary treasures.

really.

[Enrique]

5. how good can it be?

i've had good Spanish ham and it's really good, and I've been treated to good wine which was also very good, but neither was that good.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

6. I was treated to a $120 appetizer

in a 5 star restaurant.

Wild Mushrooms, with a wild mushroom sauce, over handmade pasta.

I have never tasted anything so fine, so . . . . . . . perfect. I cannot begin to describe the sensation, the incredible flavor and smell, nor the way the taste changed in your mouth, as the subtle wild mushrooms gave their full range of flavor.

When you eat white mushrooms from Jewel, it is just not the same.

Luckily, I was not the recipient of the check, but my date was. (then again, nor was I a heir to the Searle drug fortune, either. She liked to splurge)

Frankly, Louis the XIV cognac was fine, but overpriced. As for the pork main course, I can understand why specially raised meats are so much more expensive. The taste is fantastic.

[aikoaiko]

9. I don't have the money for such things, but price/pound its cheaper than Beluga

I could be happy for a long time with that ham. some crusty bread, and a couple of cases of rioja.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. Time to go kosher.

[Writer]

4. I smell a Jiffy Pop moment...

:popcorn:

[blueworld]

7. No biscuits & red-eye gravy??? What a rip off. n/t

[MadHound]

8. LOL, "special diet of acorns and roots"

In other words this is simply a traditionally raised, free range organic pig. Big whoop, they taste good, but one can find them in most regions at much lower prices. I think I'll tell my neighbor the next time I see him he needs to jack the prices on his hogs next time I see him, since after all, his hogs are raised on the same diet. It's pigs eating what pigs eat if you let them loose to choose.

[GreenPartyVoter]

13. Talk about your BS in advertising. *snarf*

[CatWoman]

10. Andrew Zimmern did a report on those pricely pigs and their products

when he did a show in Spain.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXOtLtevyEg

[ret5hd]

11. Well, the regular everyday Iberico 'BELLOTA' Ham is running about $1800...

who the hell can afford this stuff?

http://www.jamon.com/products/j-jm-106.html
http://s7d2.scene7.com/is/image/LaTienda/jm-106?defaultImage=placeholder_240x240&$reg_1000$

[Enrique]

12. if I ate $1800 ham I'd barf

I need the really good stuff.

[metapunditedgy]

14. Limbaugh sells for over $1 million per pound. Your ham is an amateur. n/t