Salume is the Italian word for meats preserved with salt. Charcuterie is the French art of making pâtés, terrines and rillettes. These methods not only make meat last longer but also taste more delicious.

Salume can cover everything from salami to prosciutto to bresaola. What unites them is salt. It is the ‘sal’ in salume, salsicche and salami. Salume has always been about preserving fresh meat to make it last longer. Traditionally farm animals, particularly pigs, were fattened for slaughter over summer and made into salume to feed the family over the lean winter months. The salt stops bacteria from spoiling meat as it cures. Salt stops the salume from spoiling as it air dries. Salt also amplifies flavours. As salume ages, changes occur in the meat creating new delicious flavours and captivating aromas.

At Savour and Grace we also use the term ‘salume’ to cover other salt cured products from other traditions that includes jamón, chorizo and other European style salami. We work with some of Australia’s great salume makers to bring you products that you can slice and serve to suit your needs.

The word charcuterie comes from the French words chair or ’flesh’ and cuit meaning ‘cooked’. Cuts of pork, and often the lesser loved cuts, are cooked with salt, herbs, spices and sometimes wine to create delicious foods that are highly valued, look great on the plate and match easily with wines.

Milk is one of the most nutritious foods on Earth. Dairy farmers learned long ago that naturally occurring cultures can ferment a pail of milk into curd in hours. When salt was added to that curd and handled properly they worked out that it could be preserved for weeks, months, even years. They had many names for it, but we call it cheese.

We have hand picked a range of cheese and dairy products from everyday basics to exceptional table cheeses. Together they form a cheese and dairy collection tailored for the hospitality industry and for those selling to cheese lovers to enjoy at home.

For the busy kitchen we have everyday, reliable and best value essentials such as feta, chevre logs, fresh mozzarella and ingredient cheeses like ricotta and fresh goat’s curd. To finish great dishes from gratines to risotto we stock Comté, Gruyere and Parmigiano Reggiano.

Our select range of benchmark international and local cheeses are cared for and delivered at their best, including such classics as: Jouvence Brie Fermier; Gabriel Coulet Roquefort and Bay of Fires Cloth Bound Cheddar. Serious cheeses with substance and sophistication to allow you to finish any meal in style.

The preservation of fish and seafood harnesses the power of nature. Some fish are dried in the wind. Others are cured over smoke from a fire. Many are cured under a layer of salt. Preserving fish is an ancient art and when mastered produces sublime but perfectly simple foods.

Salt, vinegar and olive oil; these three traditional preserving mediums are still used today to capture the flavour, colour and nutrition from the harvest of seasonal produce. Some small greens, such as capers and caper berries, are best preserved under salt. For bright colours and crunchy texture vinegar is the best preservative – think sour dill pickles for your Rueben sandwich. Our range of condiments and accompaniments, such as cornichons, guindillas and mushrooms sott’olio – or ‘under oil’ will complete your salume, charcuterie or cheese platter and even your cured fish plates.

Fresh olives are preserved in brine. Some are then stored in brine and vinegar, others under oil. There they keep, safe and tasty, gaining in depth of flavour. We have access to some of the best in the country. Good vinegar starts with good wine or cider in which the alcohol itself has been fermented once more by bacteria. We love stocking extra virgin olive oil – an essential cooking fat, and perhaps the most appreciated expression of a preserved food.