Culinary Cult Objects: Worth the Price?

THE "ULTIMATE" // Jamón Ibérico de Bellota: This Spanish ham is widely promoted as hog heaven, but to me its all-acorn diet gives it an aggressive nuttiness that gets in the way of the pork flavor. $950 for a 12- to 13-pound Fermín ham, tienda.com

THE CHALLENGER // Edwards "Surryano" Ham: This ham produced in Surry, Va., is, to my mind, superior to any Spanish rival in the clarity and force of its pork taste, which neither salt nor smoke can obscure. $215 for a 15- to 17-pound bone-in ham, edwardsvaham.com

THE VERDICT: Unless you are addicted to acorns, it's Surryano by a country mile.

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