To this day, in the mountainous Val Veddasca area, the “violin” is still produced. It is a special leg of ham using the thighs of goats or sheep bred in semi-wild state. It owes its name to the shape it acquires and to the way in which it is sliced: the leg is used as the handle while the muscular mass represents the sound box, and it is cradled like a violin, with the knife being held as if it were the violin’s bow.

This “violin” is still prepared nowadays as it was by the artisans of long ago; the pieces are salted and flavoured with garlic, washed in red wine and rubbed with juniper berries, being then left to season for a period that varies from three to six months.

It is a ham that releases an intense and delicately spiced fragrance and flavour, appreciated for its particular and incomparable taste as well as its easy digestibility. Production of the “violin” is still linked to mainly family run businesses, and this makes it into the sought after rarity that brings many gourmets to the actual production areas; a product so rare and appreciated that a supervisory body ( “Presidio”), has been provided by the “Slow Food Movement” for its safeguarding and the development of its quality.