After the festivities, I looked back on what made my taste buds happy.
IPhor Trading’s Adriano Stefanutti has been a source of many ingredients, cured meats, cheeses and wines from Italy.
Stefanutti is a Friulano, or an Italian who hails from the northeastern region of Friuli, the region that produces Levi Prosciutto San Daniele, Speck Sauris, Blu Ramandolo and Montasio cheeses, and many wonderful wines. He brings to us premium products that bring pleasure even to the most discriminating palates.
Stefanutti served as a consul at the Italian Embassy of Manila until 2012. Upon retirement, he and business partner Gale Atienza put up iPhor Trading to fulfill their passion for Italian culture.
Their products, aside from gourmet food and fine wine, include designer fashion bags and accessories, luxury office and residential furniture, coffee and coffee machines, Murano jewelry and chandeliers.
It is their food line, however, that I am most drawn to. There is always something new.
Stefanutti said that through iPhor’s products, “you experience the real deal, what the Italians use and eat every day, the lifestyle.”
This year, I was introduced to a new addition to Stefanutti’s salumi (Italian cold cuts) selection, Lardo di Colonnata. It is back fat cured in salt, black pepper, rosemary and garlic. The ingredients are placed in between the layers of back fat, then aged on marble. Other herbs and spices may be added. It is then left to age naturally in caves for at least six months.
The climate in Colonnata is ideal for producing lardo. The process of making it has remained the same since Roman times. It is produced under the regulatory standards of the IGP (Indicazione Geografica Protetta, or Indication of Geographic Protection).
Rich, buttery taste
On New Year’s Day, I served lardo alongside Speck de Sauris and Prosciutto San Daniele Levi. The lardo had a delicate but rich and buttery taste, with hints of herbs and garlic.
To cut through the richness, I later added grated fresh tomatoes, drizzled with a bit of olive oil and ate it with warm baguette. Each bite was luscious, decadent.
Also on my platter of cold cuts to welcome 2018 was Speck di Sauris. It had a tender yet chewy bite. The mild smokiness was pleasant.
My salumi selection would not be complete without Levi Prosciutto San Daniele, a staple on my table for years. This pink-hued prosciutto is fresh on the palate—soft, perfectly marbled, with a sweet finish.
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