My step dad is 82 and from the western prairies of Canada. He has been in America for 50 years. But he still dreams of eating a piece of pork that taste of his youth. Can I make this dream come true this Christmas. Lobels sells Korubuta pork for a reasonable enough price , but the shipping fee is Any ideas out there?

Hi I am new to the board but have been lurking forever.

Cocogirl:

Weclome to DR.com. Upthread, Birus reports that Korubuta porks is available at Wegmans. I don't know if it is the same stuff your father had, but you might consider taking one for the team and filling the rest of us in.

Wegmans only has Kurobuta ham, not roasts/chops/etc. As far as heirloom pork goes, Home Farm out in Middleburg does awfully good tastes-like-pork-used-to Gloucester Old Spot roasts and chops.

Home Farm looks great. Any ideas for any place closer in to Washington DC. It does not have to be Korubuta pork- it is pork that taste the way pork did 50 years ago that I am really looking for. Thanks.

Another mail order option is http://www.heritagefoodsusa.com/. They are not cheap, however. I splurged on a Berkshire Boston butt this past summer and was very happy with the product (had a friend smoke it for me). But I think it was a try-it-once experience, given the cost.

Does your father give any more detail about the way pork tasted 50 years ago?

I am not quite old enough to remember that far back, but I do remember that pork used to be much fattier and moister which translated into a richer mouthfeel and more flavor.

But it seems to me that your father, who, as you say, used to live on the western prairies of Canada, may be remembering something special that had to do with what the animals were eating?

If I recall correctly, people who kept pigs on farms for their own use, used to feed them things like apples, and buttermilk, and table scraps, and let them run wild so they could eat acorns, and so on and so forth.

I have a friend who is looking for a reliable local source for Berkshire pork.

Anyone know of one?

On Sundays at the Dupont Circle farmers' market from 10-1, there are three or four purveyors of heirloom pork. The best known is Polyface/Eco-Friendly, which is down at the Mass. Ave end of the market, near the Firefly Farm goat cheese stand.

Check out the Organic Butcher of McLean, which is across from the Balducci's in McLean, VA. They have local, grass fed and sustainably raised meat, including heirloom pork. Great place, if a bit pricey. Closed Mondays. Also Dupont Circle Farmers' Market on Sundays from 10-1. At least three heirloom pork purveyors are there every week.