From A 100-Year-Old-Fish to a 24K Gold Tin, Almas Caviar

February 24, 2006 | Posted by Allison as Expensive Eats at 11:30 am | (5) Comments »

Almas Caviar.jpg

The word ‘almas’ is Russian for diamond, which is a fitting name for the world’s most expensive caviar.  This beluga caviar is white in appearance and comes from a fish which is over 100 years old.

The beluga is believed to have remained unchanged for the last 120 million years.  It is one of the oldest and most amazing survivors of the Dinosaur Era.  The beluga is the largest and only predator in the sturgeon family.  It is so rare a fish that the annual catch does not exceed 100 units.

Beluga Caviar.gif

As a general rule, the whiter the caviar the older the fish and the more elegant and exquisite the flavor.  Almas Iranian caviar is hard to come by and extremely expensive.  It is beautifully packed in none other than a 24K gold tin and is sold for an incredible price of $23,308 per 32oz. 

5 Comments »

  1. bLavish » Caviar for the Vegans Said,

    March 13, 2006 @ 2:55 pm

    [...] Luxist had a great product today for the vegans and fish-scared alike.  I thought it was worth looking into. “Since the ban of the beloved beluga, other caviars and caviar alternatives have been attracting more attention. Cavi-art has the appearance of caviar but there are no fish eggs involved. The caviar substitute, which is made from seaweed, is from Denmark  and is fat-free, lower in sodium and inexpensive ($5.98 for 3.5 ounces). According to the Chicago Sun-Times, chefs have been using it as a garnish but like Soy Kaviar, it’s not really a substitute for the real thing. Cavi-Art comes in black lumpfish, red lumpfish, yellow lumpfish and red salmon caviar flavors.” [...]

  2. Pimp My Plate: The World’s Most (Retardedly) Expensive 5 Course Meal | Frisspoint Spot Said,

    June 1, 2008 @ 7:08 am

    [...] top of the line, and there is actually a specific type of specially farmed Iranian beluga called Almas whose eggs are prized above all others. These sturgeons have lived between 60 and 100 years without [...]

  3. Tewfiq Said,

    November 4, 2008 @ 6:03 pm

    Almas is not actually a Russian word, it is common to both Arabic and Russian by a common Greek root. As the Almas Caviar is actually Iranian, in this case the word ‘Almas’ has been borrowed by the Farsi language from Arabic by means of cultural and, mostly, religious influence. Therefore, in this context, it is best to describe it as a Farsi or Arabic word, but by no means Russian.

  4. Caviarist Said,

    November 28, 2008 @ 12:32 pm

    Hi Tewfiq,
    This is actually an interesting side note as one always stumbles over the ‘russian explanation’. Thx for sharing! ZwyerCaviar doesn’t have Almas (who does these days?). But it is the only top premium caviar brand there is to date!

  5. Beluga cavair Said,

    February 25, 2009 @ 4:49 pm

    After almas caviar, beluga caviar is the next most expensive caviar due to the fact the sturgeon fish has to be 70-80 years old before the caviar eggs are extracted.

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