This moist and coarse gray salt is the essence of France, used by all the country’s finest chefs. It comes from Guerande, on the western coast of France, south of Brittany, which is home to carefully preserved wetlands where salt is naturally cultivated in marshes by the forces of sun, sea, and wind. This salt is hand harvested by artisan paludiers (craftsmen salt harvesters) using wooden rakes and ancestral, centuries-old techniques to sweep the top of the evaporating sea water, and then the salt is drained and dried in the heat of the sun. You get pure, clean, potent unrefined salt, without any chemical treatment, preservatives, or additives. Tinted gray by the nutrients that reside in the clay lining the salt pond, this storied salt gives a seaside sensation emanating the nuances and flavor of the ocean.

These jagged, coarse crystals are moist and perfect for cooking or for finishing food. You can also sprinkle them on baked pretzels, or on salty-sweet treats like chocolate or caramels. Try some on corn on the cob for a great snack. This seasoning will evoke subtle flavors in your cuisine and complement your meals. This moist salt isn't recommended for a regular grinder, and doesn't need one.

Fairway Marketplace is brought to you by Fairway Market, a specialty food chain that started back in 1933 with a small fruit and vegetable stand on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Today, Fairway Market is legendary for its experts and expertise in all things food, and a relentless obsession with quality throughout all of the different departments in its stores. In December of 2011, Fairway launched this online shop, so that we could bring the best of the best of what Fairway offers, at the same great values, to those who don’t live near one of our stores. Why keep all of this foodie goodness to ourselves? That simply would not be fair.