What were the best hams in Spain in 2020?

The 2020 award for the best hams in Spain aims to promote quality ham, as well as improve its image and positioning in the market.

At the end of last year the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food released the names of the best hams in Spain of 2020, crowning the best hams in the following two categories:

• Best acorn-fed 100% Iberian ham
• Best Serrano Ham

To this award, which aims to promote quality ham, as well as improve the image and market positioning of theseThey are accompanied by others such as the “Best extra virgin olive oils”.

However, in this post we will focus on announcing the winners of this latest edition. And, for lovers of Spanish products who want to delve a little deeper into the operation of this award, we will answer questions such as:

What phases have been carried out to choose the winners? How has the pandemic affected the celebration of this award? All this, below …

Best 100% Iberian acorn-fed ham: Juan Manuel Hernández (2016 vintage)

It 2020 the award has been received by the company from Guijuelo (Salamanca) Juan Manuel Hernández, one of the most traditional in the area (80 years of history). Their pigs are raised in the fields of Extremadura and Andalusia, this being one of the main reasons why this company has obtained this distinguished award.

These fields, as you will already know if you are a fan of raising pigs or pig farming, are very rich in holm oaks, cork oaks and herbs, being the ideal habitat for the fattening of these animals.

However, what is special about this 2016 vintage to be awarded as the Best Ham in Spain? This ham It stands out mainly for the juiciness of the meat, its persistence to the aroma and the delicate flavor, or, at least, the members of the jury have justified it.

Finally, the pieces have a weight that ranges between 7,5 and 9,0 kg, undergo more than 48 months of curing in drying rooms and natural cellars, and They have a retail price of about € 60 / kilo.

Best Serrano Ham: Reserva Escámez

In this other category the winner has been a small company located in the town of Bullas (Murcia), thanks to its Serrano Reserva Escámez, of the Guaranteed Traditional Specialty (TSG) Serrano Ham.

This ETG seal is intended for those who describe a food produced from raw materials traditionally used for more than 30 years.

Now, what has led the juries to choose this as the best Serrano Ham of the year? Mainly, its flavor and aroma made from the fattiest legs of pigs born and raised in the Bullas area.

Finally, we point out that each piece is about 8 and 10 kilos, and costs about € 85.

On the other hand, regarding the celebration of these awards, this year it has been somewhat peculiar, mainly as a result of the pandemic that we are going through. This caused, among other things, that the deadline for the presentation of the candidatures had to be suspended as a result of the State of Alarm.

To finishHow were the winners selected? To choose the winners, a panel of 5 experts was created who evaluated each sample in a blind tasting, divided into two phases: a visual one to analyze the appearance, and another of smell-taste to recognize each aroma, flavor or texture.

We hope that this 2021 we can enjoy celebrating these awards as usual. And remember that you can find much more information and current news like this on the Food Service Magazine blog.