The best ham in Italy?

Today I'm going to show you the best prosciutto in the world. My name is Marco Alberti. This is Marco. And he's going to show us how his family makes one of the best prosciuttos in the world. I represent the fifth generation of this company and we are located here right in the city center of San Daniele. Where is San Daniele? San Daniele it is in Friuli Venezia Giulia. It is a small town in the top of the hill. There are three famous producers of ham worldwide. Iberico, Parma, and San Daniele. So how is it exactly that this small family business can compete with the best in the world? Let's let Marco tell us all about it. We are in the city center of San Daniele. We always have been here since 117 years. We have a very nice garden right in the middle of the city and we are on top so we are 250 meters over the sea level. Another important thing about the microclimate of San Daniele is the fact that we have the Tagliamento river which passes right close to our hill and this gives a bit of humidity. There are two winds meeting here which is the one coming up from Trieste from the sea and the one coming down from the Alps from the border that we have with Austria basically. So they meet in this hilly part of the region of Friuli. They saw that this aging process was better here. By the way this is Luca, Marco's brother. Before entering we had to get suited up and this of course gave Alessio a new identity. I'm a doctor! There are eight steps for arriving to the best prosciutto. Let's break it down. Step number one salting and cooling. The legs rest under salt for one day for every kilo that they weigh. It's not important the amount of salt that we put on them but the time in which salt stays in contact with the meat. Step number two pre-reposo. Here's where the meat rests. And they start developing a bit of mold. Yep you heard that right and this brings us to step number three. You see how much they changed. They rest at a higher temperature while developing a mold that gives prosciutto its distinctive flavor. This is something that we want to happen but something that we also have to control. Step number four the dryer. In this phase after washing out the mold we're gonna put the prosciutto in this room to dry all the water inside. Step number five the pre-aging room. They're covered in a protective cream and left to age for another month. They are very dried so they are ready to go on with the next phase. We go upstairs. Step number six. This step is gonna shock him but now Marco gonna tell everything about it. This is just nature going on. It might be strange for you for most of people because there are some mites developing on the surface. Did he say mites? And they create some small holes and they are positive for us. By creating these small holes they make the meat respire a bit. Let's see if we can find any mites Amore. Okay let's see. Do you see any? No. Wait a second. I think I see some. Where? Okay Amore. I thought it was funny. Let's go back to the video. I love that. It's the perfect environment for prosciutto. Yeah the prosciutto environment. So here we are in the last almost stage. Step number seven. From this they turn to this. They use a kind of meat play-doh called stucco made from the fat of the meat and they press it onto the surface to continue protecting it as it goes through its final aging process. So I make prosciuttos like this. You understand? Dr. Prosciutto. This is very important for you to check. Final step ragazzi. The stamp of the San Daniele ham. Always have a look at this when they tell you this is a San Daniele ham. Here Marco was telling us about the final step they take to make sure they have the perfect product. They use an old tool, horse bone, to pierce the meat and to smell it to make sure it's perfect. Because it's porous it doesn't contaminate from piece to piece. This is one of the most ancient things that we do in San Daniele and it's still the most efficient that we have. That sounds good. I'm hungry. Approved. Approved from Dr. Prosciutto. I approve. I have such a big appreciation for this now. Like to know the whole process. Even now you have to eat it. I'm excited. Okay at this point after our tour we are so hungry and ready to fill our bellies with some delicious prosciutto. United States it's just maybe three companies send a container of prosciutto but with standard about the United States not the standard the Italy. It's really hard to find prosciutto San Daniele. Actually you will find prosciutto San Daniele. Of course we're in Italy so we have to start off with some delicious wine and some really good bread. With the king. Wow. The bottom is the saltiest part and you go up to the sweet. I know what this is. This is good. You have to try it. You did such a nice swirly thing when you did it. Just swirl it up like that and then. Go ahead. Smell it. Wait a second. The noche was already blowing just in mind. It's like you. I've never no oh my gosh I've never eaten anything like that in my life. Even the prosciutto that we've had. No no not my areas too. This is a totally different experience. It melts in the mouth. It's soft. It's thin. It's delicate. Salty. I'm in shock because I wasn't expecting that taste. I wasn't expecting that flavor when I put it on my mouth. I'm sorry I said I didn't like prosciutto before because I changed my mind just right here. This is incredible. It is the best. Wow. Next I got to try the fiocco. This is the heart of the leg. It's a little bit sweeter than the noche and it's delicious. First of all he said it was a different taste and I thought how different can it be? It's from the same thing you know. Totally different. Totally different. I don't know which one I like better. Oh my god. I don't know. It's really good. You can only eat two. Yep. You can only eat two. And now the sweetest part. I cannot believe it's so good. You like it? It's amazing. Nothing bad here. Nothing bad. What else to say? This is another one. If you like prosciutto. If you don't like prosciutto. Anyway. Anyway. Because you can change mind. For your first life. I'm speechless. This is what it is. This is what it is. You have also a small trial of the salami and the speck that we also produce. It's melting again. Yep it's melting again. Here everything is melting. You never eat a speck like this? Never. In your life? Never. Me neither. Because it's the first time I eat a speck in San Daniele. Where's the guy can eat it all again? We are here in San Daniele and we are in heaven. And the Gubana. The most typical sweet from Peru. So this is Gubana. The most typical dessert in Peru. Oh my gosh. This is no water. This is I've never heard that one before. How can I describe this to somebody who's never had it before? It's like a sweet bread, not a cake, more like a sweet bread, filled with cinnamon, walnuts, and raisins. Rolled up, topped with a little powdered sugar, and it is amazing. And then this will kill you. So I missed this part but. You're gonna scoop from the bottom. You can already tell it's gonna be good. I need three cups of this. The moms. Oh, this one. That's delicious. I told you we need three cups. We had an amazing time with the Alberti family at La Casa del Prosciutto. The hard work and of five generations is evident in their quality product and their love of sharing it with every customer that walks through the door. If you're ever in the San Daniele area, we highly recommend stopping by for a tour and the unforgettable experience of eating some of the best prosciutto in the world.