Speck Alto Adige

Speck Alto Adige is a boned, dry-salted, spiced, cold-smoked and aged pork ham produced exclusively in the autonomous province of Bolzano-Alto Adige. It is registered under three protected names in Italian and German and is distinguished from other cured hams by the combination of smoking and dry-curing carried out within the defined mountain territory.

About this designation

Speck Alto Adige IGP, also registered as Südtiroler Markenspeck and Südtiroler Speck, received PGI protection on 21 June 1996 and is recorded in the EU register under file number PGI-IT-0327 and eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000013141. The applicant and control body is the Consorzio Tutela Speck Alto Adige, based in Bolzano. Processing must take place entirely within the autonomous province of Bolzano-Alto Adige. Whole hind legs used in production must weigh no less than 10,5 kg before boning; after boning and trimming, the legs, known in Italian as baffe, must weigh at least 5,2 kg. At delivery, core temperature must be between 0 °C and 7 °C. Salting and flavouring are carried out by the dry method within four days of the starting date of production. Smoking is cold-smoking conducted at a maximum temperature of 20 °C. Ageing takes place at an ambient temperature of between 10 °C and 16 °C and a humidity level of between 55 % and 90 %. When released for consumption, the product is brown on the outside; slices show a red lean part with pinkish white fat. Chemical requirements include total protein greater than or equal to 20 %, sodium chloride less than or equal to 5 %, and a water-to-protein ratio less than or equal to 2,0. All labels must carry the PGI logo, and the protected name may not be translated. Cutting, slicing and packaging may take place only within the production area.

Source: The register document this entry was written from · retrieved August 26, 2026

Distinctive facts

• Registered as a PGI on 21 June 1996 under file number PGI-IT-0327 (eAmbrosia: EUGI00000013141).
• Three names are protected: Speck Alto Adige, Südtiroler Markenspeck, and Südtiroler Speck; none may be translated on the label.
• Boned and trimmed legs must weigh at least 5,2 kg, and smoking must not exceed 20 °C.
• Cutting, slicing, and packaging are permitted only within the autonomous province of Bolzano-Alto Adige.

Tasting notes

South-Tyrolean lightly-smoked aged ham, deep dark-red lean with thin fat cap, balanced salt-smoke flavor, aromatic with juniper, bay leaf, rosemary; firmer denser texture than Parma due to combined dry-cure plus cold-smoke plus aging.

HoReCa use

Sliced thin for South-Tyrolean and Alpine antipasto; paired with rye bread, horseradish, and pickles; classic ingredient in Tyrolean Knödel and Tirtlan.

Packaging

• whole-piece-bone-in-4-5kg
• whole-piece-boneless-vacuum-3-4kg
• half-piece-vacuum-1.5kg
• deli-sliced-vacuum-100g
• pre-sliced-tray-150g