Smuggling Hams back to the USA

[koilife]

Ok, so maybe not by smuggling, but has anyone taken a ham back to the U.S.? Wine is trivial---ship it and pay import duties. But can I do the same with a ham? The markup on buying Spanish hams on the US is outrageous by comparison to what I would pay at any carniceria.

 

[VNwalking]

Ok, so maybe not by smuggling, but has anyone taken a ham back to the U.S.? Wine is trivial---ship it and pay import duties. But can I do the same with a ham? The markup on buying Spanish hams on the US is outrageous by comparison to what I would pay at any carniceria.

Sorry to say it doesn't look like it, koilife:
https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/944/~/bringing-meat,-poultry-or-pork/swine-products-into-the-u.s.
And in case you want to try, and declare it:
http://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/la-trb-u-s-customs-ham-spain-20150616-story.html
And if you didn't declare it...you'd get a ten-grand hunk of ham that would go straight into the USDA incinerator!
Enjoy it in while you can!

 

[Kanga]

It could not be done in Australia without first getting clearance from our quarantine service. I assume the US has a similar service responsible for bio-security. You would not want to inadvertently import some parasite that endangers US pork belly futures - yum!

 

[Kanga]

whoops, @Viranani beat me to it.

I've had a bit of experience being involved with food imports - part of the markup in imported goods is the cost involved in the processes necessary to pass quarantine restrictions. To me the extra cost is worthwhile if it protects the local industry from nasty pests, parasites and diseases.

 

[koilife]

I struggle with how bringing in a cured ham for personal consumption jeopardizes an industry. If there's an issue with it, the worst that happens is I send my guests to the emergency room, which I can do just as easily by serving locally sourced foods, or any food improperly prepared. Yes, I can intellectually construct situations where there could be an issue crossing the small-lot, end-consumer boundary to industrial risk, but they are all far fetched so far as I can conceive.

Regardless of the regulatory overkill debate, which isn't the point here anyways, I'm still looking for inexpensive legal ways through the restrictions. For instance, does anyone know of shops in Santiago where an approved Spanish exporter can mail it with the required certificates and seals (now there's a valuable sello!) to comply with the CBP requirements?

 

[Kanga]

Food waste goes into landfill, birds, predators and insects transmit organisms.

 

[VNwalking]

@Kanga's right, koilife. Not that you would let any of that ham end up as food waste...but laws like this are there for legitimate biosecurity reasons. There's a list of approved butchers but it's probably not what you're looking for:
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/wcm/co...ablishments.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&ContentCache=NONE

 

[marbuck]

Kanga is right, buy it in the States.

 

[Anemone del Camino]

And this goes for people thinking they need their meet and nut snacks from home and want to bring them into Europe. Please leave your beef jerky at home.

 

[koilife]

@Kanga's right, koilife. Not that you would let any of that ham end up as food waste...but laws like this are there for legitimate biosecurity reasons. There's a list of approved butchers but it's probably not what you're looking for:
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/wcm/co...ablishments.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&ContentCache=NONE

Not sure it is or isn't; I suspect it plays a part, though I'm not sure how to use it yet.

For the record and in case it wasn't clear to those that missed it, I'm looking for a legal way to initiate the purchase in Spain and thereby save some money. The suggestion of smuggling was only to generate visibility of the post, my assumption being that this isn't commonly done (if at all) and therefore a greater number of views would be helpful to surface any legitimate suggestions.

One of three cases is likely to be true here.

1. It cannot be done by a consumer and is restricted to commercial transactors only. This would be the case where I have to go through a US retailer and is very expensive.

2. It can legally be done by a consumer, but only under a specific set of circumstances (specific brands, specific packaging and certificates, specific agents, etc.).

3. Same case as #2, but in the same price range as #1, which begs the question of why bother in the first place.

I'd hate to miss a hidden #2 because of a lack of imagination or a path of least resistance.

 

[Valy]

I live in Norway. Here the rules for importing food are very strict. I purchased a whole ham in Madrid, they cut and vacuum packed it in big chunks. So I put that ham in my luggage and passed thru customs without any problem.

 

[naplesdon]

The same is true for cheese. However there are prepackaged products at duty free but in general the ham will come sliced in shrink wrap packages which is probably not the presentation you are thinking. There are constant jokes about the Basque carrying ham back and forth between Bilbao and Bayonne, a little like carrying coal to Newcastle, but some folks are very particular about their hams.

 

[koilife]

@Valy, Glad it worked for you there. Buen provecho!

 

[t2andreo]

Some years back, I retired from that US border agency. So, what I say here is as "official" as you can get. Unless you follow legal importation rules, your food product WILL be identified at the US port-of-entry.

I advise not taking the chance. A canned,processed and preserved jamon might make it through okay. But NOT a jamon on the hock as they say...

I have a mental picture of Lucy Arnez (Lucille Ball) wrapping a large Italian cheese in a swaddling blanket like an infant child, while flying back to the US from a trip to Italy, on a classic US TV episode of I Love Lucy... It was VERY funny. However, meats and cheeses are the first thing usually discovered in the inspection process.

That is what those cute little beagle-type dogs are for at US and other countries places of entry. The beagles are trained to detect organic substances, and specifically FOOD products. And they are particularly good at it too. But, they normally cannot smell a commercially packed canned or vacuum packed item, provided the outside of the container is well rinsed. For what it is worth, that is why you CAN bring back vacuum packed salmon from some countries...like Canada. Norway, or other EU countries.

Other canines, typically and more aggressive and larger breeds, are trained to smell drugs or explosive substances (not both).

All canine detection dogs, except the drug dogs are "passive alerters." This means they just sit down, or gently paw something when they detect. I have met some who just turn around and give their "human" the "look..." Fortunately, this includes the explosive substance and precursor chemical detection canines.

On the other hand, in my experience and observation, the narcotics dogs are mostly active alerters. They will pounce on a detected item or the bag it is in, or provide some readily viewable sign that they are on to something. Lying low, but coiled to leap, in a pre-attack position with a wildly wagging tail is one such reaction... salivating is another. Depending on their specific area of expertise, they LOVE to get their mouths on the item or the bag that it is in...

Finally, a constructive suggestion. In the US, there is a speciality shop carrying all manner of Spanish food and other "lifestyle" items. I can even obtain my Heno de Pravia, olive-oil soap there. The shop is called La Tienda. Here is their web site: https://www.tienda.com/

They may not be "cheap" but they are reliable...and legal...

I hope this helps.

 

[Mark Lee]

And this goes for people thinking they need their meet and nut snacks from home and want to bring them into Europe. Please leave your beef jerky at home.

I've never had a problem bringing Clif energy bars on my Caminos. I throw a dozen or so of them in my backpack. Good stuff...

 

[bystander]

Many many years ago, unaware of the US restrictions on importing meat products, I took English smoked bacon as a gift for my hosts.

My flight into Miami coincided with the arrival of a couple of flights from Central and South America.

The customs officials were well prepared for them with large waste bins alongside each of them.

As each Hispanic went past so large quantities of fruit, veg and meat and possibly tarantulas and other venomous wildlife tumbled into the bins!

When my turn came I felt it best to own up to my bacon.

It was confiscated but not put in the bin.

I asked why?

With a grin the officer said "It's going home with me for my breakfast"!!

 

[t2andreo]

Although I rather doubt the officer's explanation about breakfast, I was not there. But, you did the correct thing, in 'fessing up.

 

[bystander]

Although I rather doubt the officer's explanation about breakfast, I was not there. But, you did the correct thing, in 'fessing up.

Believe me - it happened - it was in the summer of 1974 and I was seriously "hacked off" about it!
I told my host, a Presbyterian minister, about it and he was not as surprised or sceptical as you!!

 

[t2andreo]

Sheesh, 1974 was even before my time in government service! Given that datapoint, I would speculate that your experience was likely correct. Things used to be far more lax than they are now. Thanks for clarifying...

 

[Kanga]

Having a casual involvement with the commercial import and export of food into Australia (legally) I know it can be done. It is a matter of contacting the quarantine service and meeting their requirements. It might be simple. After all, importers obviously do it.

 

[Pong]

Some years back, I retired from that US border agency. So, what I say here is as "official" as you can get. Unless you follow legal importation rules, your food product WILL be identified at the US port-of-entry.

I advise not taking the chance. A canned,processed and preserved jamon might make it through okay. But NOT a jamon on the hock as they say...

I have a mental picture of Lucy Arnez (Lucille Ball) wrapping a large Italian cheese in a swaddling blanket like an infant child, while flying back to the US from a trip to Italy, on a classic US TV episode of I Love Lucy... It was VERY funny. However, meats and cheeses are the first thing usually discovered in the inspection process.

That is what those cute little beagle-type dogs are for at US and other countries places of entry. The beagles are trained to detect organic substances, and specifically FOOD products. And they are particularly good at it too. But, they normally cannot smell a commercially packed canned or vacuum packed item, provided the outside of the container is well rinsed. For what it is worth, that is why you CAN bring back vacuum packed salmon from some countries...like Canada. Norway, or other EU countries.

Other canines, typically and more aggressive and larger breeds, are trained to smell drugs or explosive substances (not both).

All canine detection dogs, except the drug dogs are "passive alerters." This means they just sit down, or gently paw something when they detect. I have met some who just turn around and give their "human" the "look..." Fortunately, this includes the explosive substance and precursor chemical detection canines.

On the other hand, in my experience and observation, the narcotics dogs are mostly active alerters. They will pounce on a detected item or the bag it is in, or provide some readily viewable sign that they are on to something. Lying low, but coiled to leap, in a pre-attack position with a wildly wagging tail is one such reaction... salivating is another. Depending on their specific area of expertise, they LOVE to get their mouths on the item or the bag that it is in...

Finally, a constructive suggestion. In the US, there is a speciality shop carrying all manner of Spanish food and other "lifestyle" items. I can even obtain my Heno de Pravia, olive-oil soap there. The shop is called La Tienda. Here is their web site: https://www.tienda.com/

They may not be "cheap" but they are reliable...and legal...

I hope this helps.

Wow, I just checked out "La tienda". For the cost of some of those hams I can buy a round trip ticket from Montreal to Spain and have plenty left over for a nice hotel, some cheese, and wine to go with my jamon.

 

[Mark Lee]

Wow, I just checked out "La tienda". For the cost of some of those hams I can buy a round trip ticket from Montreal to Spain and have plenty left over for a nice hotel, some cheese, and wine to go with my jamon.

Yeah, I just looked that site. A grand for a ham?! I loved the hams in Spain, but ain't no ham that good, ha ha. Same goes with the effort and possible costs (fines) of trying to bring one into the US. Just ain't worth it.

 

[Juanajoanna]

I've had a long time passion for jamon iberico. I've made several "pilgrimages" to special jamon towns. And by pilgrimage I mean driving by car and eating a lot of jamon. Sorry to trivialize that term on a forum of true pilgrims.
Two years ago on my way to Spain I went to the border control office at the Denver airport. I wanted to speak to a live person as I found the website info very difficult and confusing.
I was told bringing meats in requires all sorts of approvals and probably takes specialized knowledge or lots of time to go through the approvals processs. Also the jamon would have to be certified by a Spaish vet from an approved list.
The good news is they said I could bring back any amount of cheeses for personal consumption. The only can eat was no super-soft cheeses. Consequently I came home with 7 different cheeses and had a lovely cheese tasting party.

I do recommend La Tienda. Yes their prices are high. But notice they do have various qualities and prices. Sometimes they have 50% off sales. Every year two or three years we buy a jam for Chritmas. Yummmmmm!

 

[Juanajoanna]

 

[Pong]

I've had a long time passion for jamon iberico. I've made several "pilgrimages" to special jamon towns. And by pilgrimage I mean driving by car and eating a lot of jamon. Sorry to trivialize that term on a forum of true pilgrims.
Two years ago on my way to Spain I went to the border control office at the Denver airport. I wanted to speak to a live person as I found the website info very difficult and confusing.
I was told bringing meats in requires all sorts of approvals and probably takes specialized knowledge or lots of time to go through the approvals processs. Also the jamon would have to be certified by a Spaish vet from an approved list.
The good news is they said I could bring back any amount of cheeses for personal consumption. The only can eat was no super-soft cheeses. Consequently I came home with 7 different cheeses and had a lovely cheese tasting party.

I do recommend La Tienda. Yes their prices are high. But notice they do have various qualities and prices. Sometimes they have 50% off sales. Every year two or three years we buy a jam for Chritmas. Yummmmmm!

I was just (sort of) being a wise guy about La Tienda. Its a lovely site and I expect the products are yummy. I did indeed see a $298 ham, and that price would only take me to Iceland, and only if there were a super fare deal. I say if the budget can bear it, why not have a Christmas treat now and then! I did not realize cheeses were OK. I assume you meant the hard cheeses only?? Anyway, thanks for that bit of info. I liked the cheeses just a much as the jamon only good cheese is easier to find than good ham, up here where I live.

 

[koilife]

Wow, I just checked out "La tienda". For the cost of some of those hams I can buy a round trip ticket from Montreal to Spain and have plenty left over for a nice hotel, some cheese, and wine to go with my jamon.

That same ham is less than 100 euro in any carniceria.

 

[Phillypilgrim]

I've never had a problem bringing Clif energy bars on my Caminos. I throw a dozen or so of them in my backpack. Good stuff...

Me too!

 

[whariwharangi]

My read is no ... you cannot take a ham from Spain to USA. I wouldn't try getting around the rules ... the fines would pay for several caminos involving flights USA to Madrid and complete with Parador accomodations.

Here is US customs information:
https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/de...-bringing-food-into-the-u.s.-for-personal-use

Here is US Department of Agriculture APHIS
https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/re...QNrVycDRNcjc19XV08jd10TfSz8Kv4KC7EBFACdhnoQ!/

 

[Mark Lee]

I was just (sort of) being a wise guy about La Tienda. Its a lovely site and I expect the products are yummy. I did indeed see a $298 ham, and that price would only take me to Iceland, and only if there were a super fare deal. I say if the budget can bear it, why not have a Christmas treat now and then! I did not realize cheeses were OK. I assume you meant the hard cheeses only?? Anyway, thanks for that bit of info. I liked the cheeses just a much as the jamon only good cheese is easier to find than good ham, up here where I live.

This bad boy's 1200 bucks...on sale! That must have been one special hog, ha ha.
For 1200 bucks I can go on expedia right now and book a round trip to Espana.

https://www.tienda.com/products/bone-in-jamon-iberico-de-bellota-5j-cinco-jotas-jm-99.html

 

[peregrina2000]

http://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/la-trb-u-s-customs-ham-spain-20150616-story.html

In 1971, I was coming home from Madrid after a year abroad on a student charter flight. A kid in the front of the customs line had several sticks of embutidos, mainly chorizo and spicy salchichon. He couldn't bring it in but the agent let him send them down the line so we could all enjoy our last taste of Spain.

 

[VNwalking]

I'd hate to miss a hidden #2 because of a lack of imagination or a path of least resistance.

@koilife, if you look at that LA Times article link in my post #2 above, you'll see that you're not the only one trying to find a work-around as an individual. It's a good idea so other people have tried it too. But it looks like it's not possible.
[edit--the link in my post is the same one as Laurie's. Do read it, because at the end it answers your question.]

 

[naplesdon]

I've never had a problem bringing Clif energy bars on my Caminos. I throw a dozen or so of them in my backpack. Good stuff...

Mark you are a scoundrel!

 

[Mark Lee]

Mark you are a scoundrel!

ha ha...I hope the statute of limitations is no longer in effect on that

 

[naplesdon]

What I forgot to mention is it is supposedly illegal to take hams from Spain to France and vice versa which certainly doesn't explain the huge amount of Spanish who come to the Foire au Jambon in Bayonne every year.

 

[Jennifer from Colorado]

Ok, so maybe not by smuggling, but has anyone taken a ham back to the U.S.? Wine is trivial---ship it and pay import duties. But can I do the same with a ham? The markup on buying Spanish hams on the US is outrageous by comparison to what I would pay at any carniceria.

Why not just buy some of the world's best hams...from Virginia? ???

 

[Older Guy]

My 2 cents. There are lots of really great Artisan smoke houses in various parts of the US that while not a Spanish ham may be cured in the Spanish style and may even be feed special foods to improve the flavor before being processed. The local smoke house near where I live is a good example of how you can get European style cured meats in the US. I suggest you do some research. I would wager that there is a closer smokehouse that probably has some really good "Spanish style ham."

http://carpatiasausage.com/

 

[Bajaracer]

I was in Carrefour in Burgos and saw various prices for the whole leg of ham, the lowest was €35.
You don't want to get caught trying to bring prohibited items into the US, getting caught will black list you into CBP's database to send you to secondary inspection each and every time you cross back into the US for life.
La Española Meats out of Los Angeles might have what you are looking for, I know its not from Spain, but they do have domestic jamon serrano available.
https://www.laespanolameats.tienda/en/121-la-espanola-meats

 

[RumAndChupacabras]

@koilife ... LUV'd everything about this post! I empathize.

 

[mylifeonvacation]

There was a mention of cheese upthread ... cheese is fine to bring back to the US, you just want to declare it. My past three trips back from Coruna we've brought back a whole San Simon da Costa cheese in our carry-on bags. On one trip I got quite a bit of extra attention going through security in Heathrow, as the shape of it is similar to an artillery shell. (Funny that just last month my husband carried it in his bag, and they didn't look twice...) Every time we talk to customs in Phoenix we declare the cheese, chocolate, and wine, and ask "is ham allowed yet??". They say "no", give us another look, ask again if we have any meat (we don't) and off we go.

 

[dagreen]

Spanish jamón and other cured meats are superior to their American peers. Why does the U.S. ban these products? Outdated rules I say. Trichinosis is related to pigs eating dead mice, rats, etc. It is extremely rare in domestic animals. Additionally, companies inspect their pigs during the slaughtering process. Let's get some real data. How many cases of trichinosis are caused by non-homeade jamón, fuet, chorizo, butifarra, etc.?
The U.S. is biased towards Italian products. Politicians were probably paid off.
I believe that you can take some sealed packets of jamón and a few cured sausages with a clear conscience.

 

[Juanajoanna]

Spanish jam on is NOT smoked. It is not cooked or heated in any way. It is packed in salt and kept in cold places, preferably in a cave or underground.

There is someone here in the Colorado Rocky Mountains looking to cure in the Spanish way. It's not just the curing process, but the type of pig and the diet of the pig.

The best jam on (according to Spanish standards) is a black hoofed Iberico pig that has been fed exclusively acorns and comes from Extremadura.

Another reason to do the Via de la Plata. Several days are spent walking/biking through prime pig pastures with lots of acorns! Monesterio, one of the stops along the way has a lovely Museum of Jamon.

 

[RobertS26]

As someone who makes a living as a criminal defense attorney in the United States, I am deeply disappointed at the repeated warnings not to smuggle prohibited items back into the US. My lifestyle is dependent on people exercising poor judgment and/or assuming the rules don't apply to them. If everyone followed the rules, I would be forced to find a different line of work to pay for trips to Europe. So please everyone, enough with the warnings.

 

[VNwalking]

As someone who makes a living as a criminal defense attorney in the United States, I am deeply disappointed at the repeated warnings not to smuggle prohibited items back into the US. My lifestyle is dependent on people exercising poor judgment and/or assuming the rules don't apply to them. If everyone followed the rules, I would be forced to find a different line of work to pay for trips to Europe. So please everyone, enough with the warnings.

Hee heee...
Never fear, Robert. Even if all of us on the Forum were perfect goodie two-shoes, this world would still produce plenty of scofflaws (and worse) to pay for your caminos!

 

[thirtyeyes]

As I understand it, in order to import pork products into the United States the processing plants in the foreign country (Spain) need to be approved and certified by the USDA after undergoing a very thorough examination. The first such for Spain was in 2005 or 2006 or so with the first jamon iberico's arriving in late 2007 and being sliced by Jose Andres. I seem to recall chorizo showing up a bit sooner or maybe I have that backwards. It was a whole thing in the food world back then and La Tienda was the first importer. They had people reserving hams as far back as 2004 or so. I understand there are other approved plants now, but not a whole lot.

https://www.tienda.com/dons-travels/ibericoquest.html

 

[koilife]

I suspect @Kanga's last post way up above is the right answer --- it will require some extensive research. My hope was that someone on the forum had already done that given the massive markup. Perhaps I have found my newest inter-Camino research project (and latest windmill to tilt).

I have never assumed the method would involve customs at the airport for checked bags or secretive carry-ons or deceitful disclsures. In fact, I have assumed quite the opposite, that it would require shipping with full disclosure, and in keeping with the law (for those of you joining late and not reading the thread, no actual smuggling will be occurring).

 

[Kanga]

Keep an eye on the supermarket chains too - Costco had whole Iberico Jamons here in Sydney reasonably priced last Christmas - we paid about $90 for one.

 

[Pelegrin]

My 2 cents. There are lots of really great Artisan smoke houses in various parts of the US that while not a Spanish ham may be cured in the Spanish style and may even be feed special foods to improve the flavor before being processed. The local smoke house near where I live is a good example of how you can get European style cured meats in the US. I suggest you do some research. I would wager that there is a closer smokehouse that probably has some really good "Spanish style ham."

http://carpatiasausage.com/

In Spain only is possible to cure hams (Spanish style) in certain regions according to their climate.
In places like Galicia, for example, it is not possible because is too wet. The way to cure hams in Galicia is by adding plenty of salt with no good result. In other wet regions like Leon is tradition to smoke hams.
Probably the tradition of smoking hams in the US has bee introduced in the USA by inmigrants coming from central and nothern Europe but I think that in the US there must be lots of places with dry climate good for curing hams Spanish style (Dakotas, Nebraska , Oklahoma... ??)

 

[Mark Lee]

As someone who makes a living as a criminal defense attorney in the United States, I am deeply disappointed at the repeated warnings not to smuggle prohibited items back into the US. My lifestyle is dependent on people exercising poor judgment and/or assuming the rules don't apply to them. If everyone followed the rules, I would be forced to find a different line of work to pay for trips to Europe. So please everyone, enough with the warnings.

Even though we worked on opposite side of the stand, so to speak, as a former copper I concur with you wholeheartedly counselor. My job too, depended upon the poor judgement of others.
Keep trying to sneak in the jamon and whatever other illegal food products you like, folks. There are brother and sister coppers working for the feds here that depend upon that to keep their jobs, as well as beagle dogs that need those attempts to keep them in kibbles. Oh yeah, and there's defense attorneys too. Ummm, let's not forget about them. I suppose they need their kibbles, too.
cheers and ultreia

 

[Jennifer from Colorado]

Spanish jamón and other cured meats are superior to their American peers. Why does the U.S. ban these products? Outdated rules I say. Trichinosis is related to pigs eating dead mice, rats, etc. It is extremely rare in domestic animals. Additionally, companies inspect their pigs during the slaughtering process. Let's get some real data. How many cases of trichinosis are caused by non-homeade jamón, fuet, chorizo, butifarra, etc.?
The U.S. is biased towards Italian products. Politicians were probably paid off.
I believe that you can take some sealed packets of jamón and a few cured sausages with a clear conscience.

Superior to their American peers?
Spoken by someone who's never consumed a Virginian ham.

I'm in Spanish ham country as I write this, and sorry...I love Spanish café con leche, and Navarre vino tinto, and Galician celtic music, but sorry...the ham can't hold a candle to Virginia.

Dagreen, go spend some time in the Great State of Virginia, and your horizons will have been broadened.

AND...you won't be put on a Customs watch list, to boot.

 

[koilife]

I believe that you can take some sealed packets of jamón and a few cured sausages with a clear conscience.

If you're willing to put 10,000 USD into an escrow account to pay for any fines I would have to pay, that would go a long way toward easing my conscience. If not, then I fear you're like the schoolyard bully double-dog daring the other kids to touch their tongues to the frozen flagpole.

 

[t2andreo]

I NEVER said or suggested that La Tienda was inexpensive. They ARE expensive. But, if you have a craving, it is one (arguably expensive) solution. The others, upthread, have suggested various alternatives that might prove worthwhile.

This said, if anyone DOES find a North American distributor or vendor of reasonably priced Jamon Iberico, do share it in the Forum...

Thanks.

 

[Pingüigrino]

Sorry to said this folks, but if you are paying less than three hundred euros, for a ham, in Spain, you are not eating jamón ibérico. Maybe you are eating jamón serrano, a good ham but nothing similar to Guijuelo ham or Jabugo ham. For those of you who want to buy a really good ham of those places (low salt made, black foot iberian pig, eighteen mounts in the cave, etc) be preparated for paying from six hundreds to a thousand euros. The best of the best ibérico hal you can buy at Spain costs FIVE thousand euros, but it any of you wants to buy it you need to wait for seven years. All the producción ( thirty pieces by year) are sold.

 

[Pingüigrino]

Ibérico ham is to serrano ham , like Lamborgini cars are to Yugo cars.

 

[SabsP]

Ibérico ham is to serrano ham , like Lamborgini cars are to Yugo cars.

hhahaha so right!

 

[Mark Lee]

Superior to their American peers?
Spoken by someone who's never consumed a Virginian ham.

I'm in Spanish ham country as I write this, and sorry...I love Spanish café con leche, and Navarre vino tinto, and Galician celtic music, but sorry...the ham can't hold a candle to Virginia.

Dagreen, go spend some time in the Great State of Virginia, and your horizons will have been broadened.

AND...you won't be put on a Customs watch list, to boot.

You are right. I have had some damn good smoked, cured hams in the US.
I've even had some smoked wild hog in Texas. Those bad boys are 100% organic and natural. Living in the oak bottoms eating acorns and such.
Don't get me wrong, I do like the jamon in Spain very much.
On the subject of hogs and ways of consuming them, if one is ever in the Philippines I highly recommend trying the whole, slow cooked suckling pig there. They call it "lechon". Other cultures and countries do it similar as well. Wow, that stuff is good.

 

[mylifeonvacation]

La Quercia, out of my home state of Iowa, is producing some really nice cured ham, and other meats. They are calling it prosciutto, but it's a little sweeter than what comes from Italy, and while certainly not Spanish jamón, it's very enjoyable. http://laquercia.us/

They are doing "acorn fed" of a couple of varieties of pig, which could end up being an approximation to the jamón we all love. http://laquercia.us/varietals_acorn_edition

 

[Scott Sweeney]

Where I live in Virginia I am 90 minutes from La tienda and less than 60 minutes from Jaleo and the ability to buy ham from Jose.

Remembering an attempt to bring a half kilo of Larverbread cheese from Ireland one time I might has well been trying to bring in pot. It was such a nice suit case and it was the last pair of wellies I owned. . I never seen the bags, contents or cheese again.

 

[Anemone del Camino]

This bad boy's 1200 bucks...on sale! That must have been one special hog, ha ha.
For 1200 bucks I can go on expedia right now and book a round trip to Espana.

https://www.tienda.com/products/bone-in-jamon-iberico-de-bellota-5j-cinco-jotas-jm-99.html

You might be able to book a flight for the price of a pata negra, but the ham will still remain out of budget. Pata negra is not typically seen hanging at the local butcher shop in the village of 1000 we walk through.

 

[Anemone del Camino]

For Montrelaers, here are the hams available at the Libreria espanola, and yes, that's 1600$!
http://www.lespanola.com/productos-de-españa/embutidos/jamon

To put things in perspective, they sell Palacio chorizo for 14$; it costs 2€ in any small grocery store in Spain. But at least they sell it! The only other decent chorizo I have ever found here was ... at Costco last Xmas. It was selling a
ackage of chorizzo, lomo and I think serrano for 30$. Hope they sell it again this year.