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I had seen them at the Tower Grove Farmer's market, but had missed the point. Luckily, Rene G alerted me to this ultra-high quality maker of cured meats. Today I spoke very briefly with their founder and chief salsiciere, Mark Sanfilippo, at the farmer's market. (Salume Beddu also has a shop and cafe here in St. Louis, not far from the main commercial area of The Hill, traditionally the center of all things Italian in St. Louis.) Apparently, the first prosciutto they have produced is just out. It is from acorn-fed pigs (I did not catch the breed, but the bacon is from Berkshire pigs.) The response has been terrific and I am told that it won't last. As soon has Sanfilippo tweeted, he says, people were rushing in and getting whole pounds of the stuff. Get it now if you can get there.

I hope to post more in a few weeks.

Oh, one more thing: Their t-shirt features the slogan, "Praise the Lard" !!

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

HI,

Courtesy of Crazy C, I have a 'Praise the Lard" t-shirt. Of all the silly shirts I own, it is the only one that generates an offended response from time-to-time.

Regards,

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Cathy2

"You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
Facebook, Twitter, Greater Midwest Foodways, Road Food 2012: Podcast

I can understand that response, but a former clergyman of my acquaintance laughed out loud at the sight of this shirt. At least there was no Bible citation below the slogan.
And, darn it, I just got beat out of the cool Christmas gift I would have had for you, Cathy!

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

I have had a number of things from Salume Beddu, as my wife's parents and siblings and their families all live in St. Louis. For my birthday, my sister-in-law and her husband got me some Soppressa da Veneto, pancetta, and finochionna (on the third try, as they had purchased two other assortments and eaten them prior to getting together with us), and everything was very good to excellent. I have also had the bacon and soppressata, both of which were very good as well. Not cheap, but there is artisan quality and care here, and the starting materials are top-notch. Definitely worth a trip out of your way for if you are in or around St. Louis.

I finally made it down to Salumi Beddu's main store for lunch recently. They have a nice salumi plate with house mostarda and cheeses and bread. I love the Calabrese and the finochionna. They also have a panino and usually a bean salad or something light. I was pleased that there was a steady stream of customers dropping in to pick lunch up. There is a small (read: nicely edited) selection of pastas and shelf-stable ingredients, in addition to the salumi. I was looking for some pancetta, but they were out of it. Small batches and highest quality can mean things run out. It might be a good idea to call and check that they have what you are pining for. This place is what local and artisanal are all about.

I also took the opportunity to talk with Mark Sanfilippo, the man behind the sausage. He mentioned that he is working on getting his products into some places in Chicago. I hope, for the sake of all my friends on the board, that he is successful. Here are a few pics:


Salume Beddu Interior by Josephine2004, on Flickr


Salumi Plate @ Salume Beddu by Josephine2004, on Flickr


Salumi Plate ECU by Josephine2004, on Flickr


Salume Beddu, Detail by Josephine2004, on Flickr

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

"Praise the Lard"?? What's next, "Pass the Hamunition"??!



Geo

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Sooo, you like wine and are looking for something good to read? Maybe *this* will do the trick!

Please don't suggest that, Geo. Missouri is a concealed carry state, and clearly, we have a way to go toward reducing handgun violence. It's just awful walking into the gym and having to pass the sign that reminds members that they may not bring guns into the place. . . Reminds me of the NYC clinic where a colleague used to work that had a bin for weapons at the receptionist's desk. She claimed clients observed the rules, and dutifully picked up their heat on the way out. Yikes! I'll be arming myself with a salami and a smile.

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

Mark Sanfilippo's shop was jammed the week before Christmas, but he geared up with extra staff and found time to chat about his cotechino. This year's batch was made from a Mangalitza hog. Mark explained that the slight lemony taste I detected in the sausage itself was and "old salumera's trick," that of adding coriander seed to mimic citrus. I could not wait to try it, and fortunately I didn't have to. The kitchen was serving up sandwiches of cotechino slices with perfect over easy egg, slivers of preserved lemon and pickle. A fellow sitting next to me at the communal table said he was visiting from NY, but was originally from a town near Milan that considers cotechino one of its own specialties. He was impressed. But I wouldn't have cared if he'd been cool to the cotechino. That sandwich was one of my top 10 tastes for 2012, no exaggeration!


Cotechino Sammy @ Salume Beddu by Josephine2004, on Flickr

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

The Schnuck's in Columbia, MO sells some Salume Beddu products. I'm guessing the other Schnuck's in Missouri also do (?).

Yes, there are some other outlets for Salume Beddu. My preferred ones are Local Harvest Grocery and Straub's. Not sure if they have the cotechino, as it is a seasonal specialty. There is a wider range of products available at the main store on Hampton in St. Louis, as that is where they make the sausages. I have seen Lardo, for instance. And I recall that the most up-to-date way to keep apprised of offerings is to follow the twitter feed. Apparently, all the prosciutto was sold out in a couple of hours to twitter users the last time they made it. (I need to get modern, apparently.)

_________________
Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.