This has got to be a joke. Faith Willinger wrote about a spa experience in Italy called “salumoterapia” where you inhale the fumes of a plate of cured meat and then drink some champagne. Say what?

According to Willinger, “Participants were served a plate of choice salumi—sliced prosciutto, culatello, salami, and Tuscan head cheese from Simone Fracassi. Then we were given large cloth napkins, to be placed over one’s head and the plate, deeply inhaling the porky perfumes, stimulating salivary glands and appetite. Remove napkin, taste salumi, and drink sparkling wine—Champagne, Italian sparklers, or Lambrusco.”

Whatever happened to a good ‘ol massage? Maybe a seaweed wrap? But smelling meat? Come on, now. I’m going to assume this piece in The Atlantic is all just tongue-in-cheek and just leave it at that.

For more, go here.

[via BayAreaBites]

Photo credit: The Atlantic

• Tag: champagne, cured meat, Italy, pork, salumoterapia, spas, therapy, wine