Hams at the heart of a bell tower dispute!

A rather unusual affair.
It happened in Saint-Flour, a quiet village in Cantal – 6,000 inhabitants, altitude 1,000m.

The town prides itself on having the highest cathedral in Europe as well as a particularly healthy climate.
Alas! At the heart of this sacred building, the choir organ as well as paintings, stained glass windows and gilding were dangerously deteriorating, to the great displeasure of Father Philippe Boyer, rector of the cathedral.
It was then that the prelate, a fine gourmet, had a divine idea to finance the restoration of these works of art.

Refining hams in the bell tower. A world first!

He then bought eight-month-old pieces from Cantal farms and had them hung on the beams supporting the bells to mature them for four more months, thus generating a substantial profit on resale.
Since 2022, nearly 300 premium IGP d’Auvergne pieces have been resold to starred chefs: Guy Savoy and Guy Martin in Paris, in Chaudes-Aigues, Serge Vieyra who acquired at auction a piece of bell, sorry, of 25 months of maturation.
A lucrative operation that brought in more than 16,000 euros.
The Élysée is one of the customers. Chirac was crazy about calf’s head, the Macrons would love this exceptional charcuterie.

This one was named “Florus Solatium” after Saint Flour (Florus in Latin), a bishop who lived in the 4th century and whose remains are housed in the cathedral, just below the hams.
An original way to save heritage while promoting local crafts.

Everyone was delighted with this new experiment…
when suddenly, at the end of 2023, a dramatic turn of events!
The administrative decision of the Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs (Drac) of Cantal, followed by the Bâtiments de France, falls: The hams must be taken down before December 31!
Reason: In addition to the presence of food moths and fire safety issues, fat drips loaded with salt are damaging the 15th century floors!

The story finally reached the ears of the Minister of Culture.
After examining the file, in consultation with the prefect of Cantal, Rachida Dati quickly decided.
With his blessing, Saint-Flour will be able to continue to mature its hams in its bell tower.

“We are delighted,” rejoiced the treasurer of the association Les Amis de la Cathédrale which takes care of this charcuterie activity.

The funny affair fascinates the national media, the popularity of the hams with the divine aura has swelled, so much so that orders are now pouring in from abroad.

The cathedral’s online store is stormed, delivery times are increasing, chefs from all over Europe are snapping up the blessed dry-cured hams…

Given this craze, could we not consider extending the “Holy Jambs” operation to other churches in the Region, such as the Notre-Dame du Porc basilica, pardon du Port, a Romanesque jewel in Clermont-Ferrand? (Cros, a small town in Puy-de-Dôme already matures three or four hams in its bell tower).
Religious buildings could just as well accommodate “Jesus”, the famous dry sausages from Lyon that require at least fifty days of drying.
As for the crypts, their freshness would be ideal for maturing Saint Nectaire, a great specialty of Auvergne, as well as for aging the region’s wines, such as Saint-Porcin, sorry Saint-Pourçain, or Corent, this famous rosé, pearl of the eponymous village.
Finally, we can imagine in these sacred places the maturation of an Auvergne PGI balsamic vinegar, like that of Modena which has the particularity of concentrating by natural evaporation of what is poetically called “the angels’ share”.

So many possible financial returns for the maintenance of our religious heritage which, in France, rests on the communes.
The rector of the cathedral of Saint-Flour has shown the way.

© IMPACT EUROPEAN

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Gerard CROSSAY

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