#edwardsham

As a kid, I grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains and every summer my brothers and I would be rounded up and given gallon buckets.  We were not allowed to quit until that bucket was full of the wild raspberries that grew all around our property.  A month later it was blackberries.  I didn’t get it.  They just grow wild everywhere, right?  What’s the big deal about picking, making jam, canning, freezing and all the rest of it?  Naturally, hindsight being the “lasic surgery” that it is, I now see perfectly why my mother was so intent on taking advantage of such an amazing resource. 

Recently, for those who were paying attention, we were reminded in a very scary way about the importance of appreciating what we have right here in front of us.  On Tuesday, January 19, a massive fire consumed nearly everything it touched at the home of Edwards Hams.  S. Wallace Edwards & Sons Hams is headed up by our terrifically good friend Sam Edwards – as nice a guy as ever carved a ham. He and his wife, Donna, and their son (Sam, what else?) and upwards of 60 employees have had to deal with a huge loss.

If you haven’t tried Edwards’ products, it’s hard to describe what you’ve been missing.  It’s like trying to describe fresh squeezed orange juice to someone that only drinks Tang.  (Who remembers Tang?)  They produce a smoked sausage that will blow your mind, bacon that is out of this world and fantastic country hams.  But what truly – in our minds – sets Sam apart from his peers is his commitment to his 18 month, cold smoked “Surry-ano” ham.  Made in the traditional style of Serrano ham from Spain or Prosciutto from Italy, the ham has a sublime flavor that truly melts in your mouth.  This is world class ham – and it comes from the other end of the Scotland Ferry!

While the mental image of all those beautiful hams being consumed by fire (instead of by humans) is a terrible thing, there is some good news to share!  Sam and his amazing crew are hard at work getting things back into production, even as they are working on plans for a new plant.  Friends in the industry have pitched in to help them keep product into the marketplace, so now it’s your turn!

Visit the retail Edwards Ham Shop that’s located at the corner of the Premium Outlets shopping center, order stuff from their catalog when it comes in the mail and let people know how great the company is.