@aglassman This is our first foray into pork (we've done grass-fed beef lots in the past...fortunately we moved recently and haven't yet stocked the freezer w/a new quarter or half cow). To nerd out on the pork...this pork is noticeably better. I think some of it is b/c we found a great farmer. In terms of how he raises them, he goes all natural, no antibiotics, etc. You can't really go "grass-fed" with pork, so he does give them some organic/non-gmo feed (oat and barley...I actually tried some of it when we went and visited the farm...tasted like a bland cracker). The big key with this pork, is the breed of pig. He's basically been breeding toward what he considers the ideal pig for the last 40 years. His critique of modern supermarket pork is that it's been bread to have as much meat and as little fat as possible...he calls them "bodybuilder hogs." For evidence, go check out a pork chop at the store. Notice any marbling/intramuscular fat in there? He breeds a variation of Duroc hogs and has been tinkering with them to basically breed them to what he considers an early 20th century type pig, which he would consider more of a "linebacker" build instead of the bodybuilder. Solid, well built, lots of marbling in meat, etc. This produces the most divine pork chops you've ever tasted in your life. He sells to several high-end local restaurants in the region despite being a small operation.
@arebelspy yeah, I know, nothing to be bothered about. Not like I could've/would've done anything differently. Just sucks. Probably some analogue to "survivor's guilt" where people who survive some event and others don't will feel guilt over "what could I have done differently." Not comparing my situation, obviously, but you end up with the same line of thinking.