Yesterday, I went to the Sierra of Aracena for the first time in over 9 months . This is where I take  people on my Iberian ham tours. It was great to be back in this wonderful area of natural beauty which in normal times I visit at least 40 times every year. I went to visit an organic farm where they raise pure-bred Iberian pigs which are acorn-fed in the last 3-4 months of their existence. I may decide to include this farm on my Iberian ham tour in the future. Below are a few of the photos that I took.

Sierra de Aracena panoramic view

Iberian pigs feeding

As well as spending time int he countryside we went to the facility where the hans are cured. As you an see in the photo below, a lot of the hams have a good coating of penicillin mould. This mould helps to draw out moisture in the ham and shows that the ambient humidity is not too high or too low. This allows for the ham too cure at a constant rate allowing for all the wondeful flavours to develop.

Iberina hams curing