We're steadily increasing organic products in our retail store and online inventory. Just in are some wonderful foods from Alce Nero, an exemplary company that has been organic for more than 30 years!!! Alce Nero pasta of 100 % Kamut, an ancient grain that is the ancestor of Durum Wheat, is rich in protein, minerals, and highly digestible. This pasta, grown without chemical substances of any kind, comes in Penne Rigate and Spaghetti cuts. 

Tomato sauces from Alce Nero will forever change your view of bottled. Alce Nero honeys are some of the best we've tried, and Alce Nero 100 % Organic Lemon Juice will be every cook's shortcut. And Frllini di Farro (cookies) are irresistible.

As the Alce Nero mission statement on its website says: "Back then (and still today), the move toward organic farming and bee breeding represented a new way, both ideal and concrete, of producing and offering delicious, healthy products that respect the environment and nature around us." Watch for more Alce Nero products on Salumeria Italiana's website. We adding them as fast as we can. However, if you want to order any of the sauces, pasta, cookies, or lemon juice, call or email us and we'll be happy to get them out to you.

We recently were privileged to tour the caves of Luigi Guffanti in Arona, Italy on Lake Maggiore. Here, Carlo Fiori and his sons age cheese purchased from small cheesemakers in Italy and France. Their skill in affinatore, or aging, is so prized that the Wall Street Journal just named Guffanti one of the 10 best cheese operations in the WORLD!!. We're happy for them, and so proud that we carry Luigi Guffanti cheeses.

Carlo Fiori, the great-grandson of the founder, is a poet of cheese. He told us how the land, the cows, their feed, the cheesemakers, and finally the affinatore revealed the soul of the cheese. In one of the caves are three cheeses marked with dates. This, Signore Fiori explained, signified the birth of three grandchildren, part of a tradition in Italian cheesemaking families. The dated cheeses would be opened and eaten on momentous occasions such as a young man's entrance into the military, a wedding day, or even a death. "For cheese," Signore Guffanti said, "is for all the times in life -- the bad as well as the good. Cheese is life."

Watch for news of more Luigi Guffanti in our retail and online store. Gaetano is looking at 5-year-old Parmigiano Reggiano, which the Guffanti staff thinks is the perfect age for this regal cheese.

Making Rubio takes patience. After all this magical balsamic vinegar has to age at least 12 years for Salumeria Italiana to deem it ready to give to you. Recently owner Gaetano visited the Rubio facility outside Modena, Italy. Here, he and Marco discuss the fine wooden barrels that give Rubio its character.  As Marco explains it, the right size barrel of fine wood is chosen so that the cooked grape must and wine vinegar come into as much contact with the wood as possible. Then the balsamico in barrels, each with its own personality, is constantly analyzed by taking out a small amount.  The barrel is refilled with a little more wine must. And then more waiting, and the process is repeated. And more waiting -- until Rubio is finally ready to ship. The result -- delicious, thick, slightly sweet balsamic vinegar -- makes patience its own reward. In taste testing, even Italian experts often can't tell the difference between Rubio and the much more expensive tradizionale balsamico. 

Last Saturday customers streamed into Salumeria Italiana on Richmond Street to shop and to taste some very special products. It was a gorgeous day to try glorious cheese, all-natural turkey galantine, chestnut cream and more. The hands-down hit was Cruculo Ubriaco, a perfectly aged cheese from Alto Adige that has been soaked in red wine. So thrilled were those who tasted that many marched right over to the cheese counter to order some to take home. The reaction confirmed what the staff already knew -- this is a cheese to keep in house -- ours and yours.

Another winner is Agrimontana Chestnut Cream, a lovely spread for morning toast or to layer as cake filling (Coming Soon: Recipe for Pear Cake with Chestnut Filling). Scalia Anchovy Paste, a handy time-saver for any cook,  was a savory favorite for many along with Artibel Calabrian Hot Peppers and Maria Grammatico Quince Paste. And Fra'Mani Turkey Galantine, made by Chef Paul Bertolli of Chez Panisse fame, found lots of fans, too.

Watch for our next tasting and look for these products on this website. We want to make sure you know about all the wonderful products we have in store for you.

Alessi is an undisputed leader in Italian home furnishing design --- and we all know the Italian reputation for excellence in design. We have just received a shipment of Alessi products -- the iconic bird-whistle teapot, espresso pots, oil and vinegar sets, corkscrews, salt and pepper sets, and more. Alessi is extremely difficult -- if not impossible -- to find in Boston so Salumeria Italiana is especially excited and proud to show it off. Here Evi displays his favorite, a dramatic lemon squeezer. Right now, the Alessi products are sold only in the store, but soon will be offered on our website. Come in and see them, or call and ask us about them. We're eager to talk!!!

"I'm addicted," swears a customer from Connecticut who has been anxiously awaiting a new shipment of Segreto Extra Virgin Olive Oil. "Are others crazy about it, too?" Yes, we replied, there are many of you. We have trouble keeping it in stock because its fans are so devoted. 

No wonder. This Sicilian oil has a smooth, rounded flavor with hints of grass and artichokes and a touch of spice at the end. The olives are harvested by hand, the production is carefully controlled, and the output dated to assure freshness so that you'll love your latest bottle of Segreto as much as the one before. In fact, its excellence garnered Segreto degli Iblei a 2010 award for Best International Robust in the fierce Los Angeles County Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition. That means Segreto is sublime when drizzled over grilled or roasted meats, sparingly added to sturdy pasta sauces, or even used to accent just-cut Parmigiano-Reggiano. (But if you find yourself drinking Segreto by the spoonful, we promise not to tell anyone!)

Boston area chefs are often seen shopping at Salumeria Italiana. Recently, it was Tim Cushman of O Ya, called the best restaurant in the US by Frank Bruni. Along with La Valle San Marzano DOP tomatoes, he was buying Agribosco  Italian Chickpea Flour. This flour, 100 percent organic and stoneground, is so terrior-centric that the location in Lazio and the grower, Dominic M., are listed right on the package. Tim (in photo at left) told us he was planning to experiment mixing the chickpea flour with soba (buckwheat) to create Japanese-style crepes. Mmmm!! We can't wait to try them.

He's not the only chef we've seen lately. One recent Saturday both Lydia Shire and her husband came in at different times to stock up for Towne, the new restaurant Lydia and Jasper White just opened on Boylston St. Lydia was looking for La Quercia lardo to use on a pizza. She now has a standing weekly order.

And earlier in the summer, Dante diMagistris scooted in right at closing to grab some Moretti Semola di Grano Duro for pasta. That must have been really fresh pasta!! 

Our Galloni Prosciutto tastings July 30 and July 31 at our store in the North End were great successes -- and great fun. The store was packed each day with tourists, locals, regulars and the curious. Chef Raymond Gillespie (shown here with a customer) did the honors, slicing up delicious prosciutto. Customers also tasted Pecorino Toscano Stagionato DOP and yummy Pugliese-style Potato Bread from Nashoba Brook Bakery (kids especially loved this). Although we didn't track the number of tasters, manager Goni Topi reported that multiple legs of prosciutto were sold.  We had so much fun that we're planning more tastings of other products. Stay tuned on our website and in our Giornal-e for news!!!