La Dehesa

The hallmark jamón is jamón Ibérico de bellota (bellota is Spanish for acorn). When they are around a year old, Iberian pigs are moved onto the dehesa, the holm oak forests that cover 2.5 million hectares (6 million acres) of south-west Spain. For a four-month period, called montanera, the pigs lead a supervised free-range existence consuming up to 10 kg (22 lb) of grass, acorns, insects and other small wildlife a day. The herds can wander up to eight kilometres each day. This combination of an oil-rich acorn diet and exercise helps the fat interlace the flesh and gives a distinctive nutty flavour and a texture that can range from overtly rich and luscious to lean, minerally and silky. There is an argument that huge tracts of Spain covered in beautiful open woodland have not been cleared because of the beautiful jamón they help produce. So save the forests and eat jamón!