The veritas crudo of prosciutto

I rarely write about food on this blog - that's not due to a lack of interest, but rather just a matter of focus - this is a wine blog, after all. But following a recent trip to San Daniele di Friuli, to sample wines and enjoy the famed local prosciutto, I felt compelled to write about the San Daniele PDO (Protected Designation of Origin - essentially the same concept as appelation contrôlée in wine).

Prosciutto being carved

As you admire the deep red hue of a leg of Prosciutto di San Daniele sitting on its carving clamp, you may imagine the artisanal process by which it was made - some pigs running around in the field, the ham hung from the ceiling in the farmer's cellar as it slowly matures. However this is pure fantasy for the vast majority of Prosciutto di San Daniele, which is produced on an industrial scale, using meat from factory farmed pigs. This is not to doubt the consistent quality of the product - the PDO regulations are fanatic in their detail, designating everything from…