Hard work, a few secret ingredients and only using Australian pork has placed Griffin and Morris Village Butchers at the top across a number of categories in this year’s Australian Meat Industry Council (AMIC) Australian Charcuterie Excellence Awards.
The butchers took out the champion award in the pastrami category for their Wagyu pastrami, gold in the bacon category for their streaky bacon, gold in the boneless leg ham category, gold in the Kranski category for their smoked jalapeno chedder Kranski, bronze in the traditional leg ham category for their ham on the bone, bronze in the chorizo category for their smoked chorizo, bronze in the traditional bacon category for their long rindless bacon and silver in the short loin bacon category for their short cut rindless bacon.
Co-owner Steven Morris said the Wagyu pastrami was special as it used Sher Wagyu with a marble score of nine-plus.
“Sher is one of the best Wagyu in the country,” he said.
“That was quite an achievement for us.”
The team smokes the Wagyu for three hours before applying a special rub and slow cooking it for 10 hours in an oven.
Mr Morris said the team were proud of securing another gold medal for their boneless leg ham.
“Each year, we’ve held the benchmark of getting a gold medal,” he said.
Mr Morris said one of the keys to their success was only using Australian pork.
“Our smoke ovens are the best in the world,” he said.
“We have great ingredients and incredible equipment.”
AMIC chief executive officer Patrick Hutchinson said the award entries showcased dedication and craftsmanship.
“This year saw double the entries in the Australian Charcuterie Excellence Awards compared to last year, showing how important the awards program is in recognising excellence within the flourishing smallgoods industry,” he said.
“Congratulations to all ACEA winners for their remarkable accomplishments.
“Our entrants’ pursuit of excellence is the cornerstone of our industry’s growth and success.”
The Australian Meat Industry Council (AMIC) is the sole peak Industry body representing the post-farm gate meat industry, including processors, smallgoods manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors through to independent retail butchers and exporters.
