## 1 Introduction  
The unique flavor of dry cured ham is the result of a long manufacturing process that produces changes in its aroma and taste. The dry cured ham aroma is markedly affected by the raw material and several parameters during the production process. Raw hams undergo several stages, such as salting with dry salt, washing, post-salting for salt equalization and ripening-drying. In the course of this long process, over 24 months in some cases, the temperature and humidity are controlled to reduce the risk of bacterial spoilage [1]. However, the final products obtained by this process are heterogeneous and there are many kinds of hams whose overall quality depends on diverse factors such as pig breed, age and feeding. The heterogeneity also occurs within a single ham sample since locations in the ham (_i.e._, muscles and fat) are characterized by diverse concentrations of flavor compounds. The aroma of dry-cured hams is due to the presence of many volatile compounds, most of them produced by chemical and enzymatic mechanisms during the _post-mortem_ process [2]. Lipolysis and proteolysis are the main biochemical reactions involved in the generation of these compounds, producing a wide range of volatiles and precursors [3]. Therefore, a better understanding of dry-cured ham aroma should include the identification and quantification of the volatile compounds present in the samples. Several studies have reported information on the volatile composition of Iberian [4], Parma [5], French [6] and Spanish Serrano hams [2]. Some of the published papers have pointed out the variability of the quantified volatiles, which can be due to the fact that the hams are not homogeneous products and the muscles and subcutaneous fat of the samples may differ in their composition. Furthermore, it has been established that chemical changes occurring in different muscles during ripening influence the ham flavor [7]. Nevertheless, the contribution of the main volatiles of each muscle to the ham aroma is scarcely unknown [8]. The study of the aroma, and the volatile compounds of dry cured hams, implies the examination of the factors that leads to characteristic sensory notes. Pig feeding and breeding are among the most remarkable factors affecting dry cured ham aroma [9]. Large farm pigs are usually fed with fodder (e.g., mixture of maize with other cereals), while higher quality is achieved if they are fed with acorns instead. Pig breed is also an outstanding characteristic that determine price and quality. Usually the pigs that are fed with acorns are also from the particular Iberian breed. Therefore, the feeding and breed types are two factors that are usually studied together (Iberian+acorn feeding _vs._ non Iberian+fodder feeding). This work displays the results of a thorough study of the volatiles produced by each one of the four well-known ham locations (_biceps femoris, semimembranosus_ and _semitendinosus_ muscles, and subcutaneous fat) in hams corresponding to different feeding and breed types. Amino acids, on the other hand, are not only responsible for texture, and partially for taste, of hams, but also they are at the origin of some volatile compounds determined in the muscles [10, 11]. For that reason, amino acids, together with creatine and creatinine, have been determined in dry cured hams to find their relationship with the occurrence of some volatile compounds. Although some previous studies have addressed the simultaneous analyses of volatiles and amino acids of dry cured hams, they are based on few samples and/or centered in a particular breed/feeding type [12, 13]. The objectives of this work were: (i) the evaluation of the amount of each volatile produced at each ham location, (ii) the understanding of the potential contribution of the volatiles released in these locations to dry cured-ham aroma, and(iii) the relationship between the concentration of amino acids and volatiles quantified in the 4 ham locations.