The Iberians founded by Jordi Atienza. Spaniard with vast experience in the food and beverage industry both in Spain and here in Australia. Originally from the Iberian Peninsula, he’ve lived in Australia for more 20 years. His passion is to manufacture traditional Spanish smallgoods to authentic recipes.
Roots
Our speciality, the Spanish chorizo is the most emblematic and outstanding sausage from Spain and has its origins on the Iberian Peninsula. Now, as before, it is mostly produced in the regions of northern Spain in areas such as Salamanca, Asturias and the Basque Country.
It received its characteristic red colour during the sixteenth century, when pimentón (paprika) was first produced in Spain. Pimentón is made from the chilli discovered by Columbus on his first trip to the ‘New World’. When he found the hot capsicum, he called it pimiento, from which the word pimentón is derived from.
Columbus carried peppers and other new fruits back to Spain, where they were cultivated by monks in various different abbeys. The monks at the Yuste monastery in La Vera in Extremadura were the first to dry the peppers and use the powder as a flavouring and food preservative. Apparently, when the Emperor Charles V abdicated the Spanish throne in 1555 and retired to the Yuste monastery, where he got to love the spice and used it frequently in his kitchen.
Jordi has created a chorizo originating from deep traditional roots from the Catalan and Basque regions in Spain. This combination of two styles – one a grandmother’s family recipe handed down through generations and is from Osona (Catalan) where the majority of cured meats are produced and from the renown 76 year old butcher, Ayetxu from the Pyrenees mountains in the Basque country.
Respectively and delicately combining these two styles of chorizo, Jordi has created The Iberians chorizo, a chorizo that transports the consumer to those many moments when it is eaten in Spain: during summer festivals in the streets; at big family reunions; in excursions through the woods; or just in a bocadillo (chorizo on bread roll) during recess at school.
What makes our chorizo arguably the best in Australia?
Our chorizo is made from four types of pimentón with a mix of Spanish family secret herbs and Linley Valley Pork from Western Australia. The pigs raised at Linley Valley Pork are fed on a nutritious diet of Western Australian grains, such as barley, wheat and lupins. This ensures a high-quality base from which The Iberians Chorizo is produced.
Pimentón is the component that makes the difference in the production of chorizo, giving it the particular red colour and the distinctive flavour. The Iberians chorizo has a blend of four different types of smoked ‘Pimentón de la Vera’, a P. D.O. product internationally recognised for its unique quality.
‘It took us more than a year to produce the right mix, but the delicious result truly deserved the effort: a taste like no other chorizo in Australia because this is the only chorizo made in this way.’ The Iberians.
We are currently producing different types of Chorizo (red, green, hot, skinny) that complement our imported range of Spanish products such as serrano and iberico ham, cheeses and variety of specialised products like Spanish anchovies and pickles along with Spanish spices.
Our team approaches cooking as a labour of love, emotions and feelings. There is a reason why this hearty, simple product has stood the test of times over generations: it makes you feel right at home.