How to Judge a Salami

The terminology and taxonomy for wine and cheese tasting is well established.  Even beer aficionados have a sophisticated vocabulary to go along with their refined sensibility.  Almost every fermented by-product has its own language.  But how does one begin to describe salami?

The dimensions of a good salami seem limitless, but here is an attempt at defining some axes upon which a salami can be analyzed:

Composition

• traditional place of origin
• shape (width, length, u-shape, etc)
• composition of casing
• thickness of casing
• covering of casing (flour,  yeast, and/or mold)
• origin of meat used
• feed given to animals
• quantity of fat added
• origin of fat used
• coarseness of the chopped meat
• smoked or unsmoked (or artificially smoke flavored)
• quantity of nitrites or nitrates
• type of bacteria used in curing
• aging time
• color

Flavor

• amount of pepper
• amount of garlic
• any other herbs or spices of note
• spiciness
• bitterness
• sweetness
• saltiness
• sourness (acidity)
• other notable flavors
• chewiness of outer edge
• texture of meat
• texture of the fat
• sweatiness

This breakdown seems inadequate, but will at least cover the crudest description of salami for the time being.