Summer sausage

Seasonings may include mustard seeds, black pepper, garlic salt, or sugar.

[2][3] Fermentation of summer sausage lowers pH to slow bacterial growth and give a longer shelf life, causing a tangy taste.

Summer sausages are often included in gift baskets sold by American online and mail order retailers like Harry & David, Wisconsin Cheeseman and Hickory Farms.

[5] Historically, summer sausage predated refrigeration and referred to meats that could be consumed "in the summer months" when high temperatures would cause fresh meats to spoil.

For this reason, they became popular gifts during the winter holidays, especially in German-American settler communities.