PHOTOS COURTESY OF ISALY’S

As a lifelong Pittsburgher, I get a warm-and-fuzzy feeling each time I bite into an Isaly’s chipped ham barbecue sammich.

I love the local lunch meat so much, I can’t wait to wear a holiday sweater inspired by its maker! It’s not ugly; it’s a thing of beauty.

Isaly’s, an iconic, 120-year-old company that once had numerous delis dotting the Steel City landscape, is selling the pullover so fashionable yinzer foodies can stay cozy this winter. If you’re giving it as a gift, make sure to write the Isaly’s acronym, “I shall always love you, sweetheart!” on the card.

They’re available year-round on Isaly’s website. Each sweater is priced at $58 and sizes range from small to 2XL. I recommend going big so you can pig aht on more chipped ham. Try putting it on a pizza, n’at!

Hannah Conroy is the marketing director of Conroy Foods Inc., an O’Hara-based company known for its Beano’s brand of sandwich dressing. The business acquired the Isaly’s brand in 2015 to keep the tradition of ice cream and cold cuts alive. Isaly’s storefronts around town, including the one in my neighborhood of West View, are independently owned.

When Hannah, who grew up in Indiana Township, moved to Boston to attend college, she asked her parents to send her chipped ham so she could introduce her roommates to the delicacy.

“They said, ‘We don’t know what we’re eating, but it’s amazing!’,” she explains.

Since it’s such a nostalgic treat for Steeler Nation, a former Isaly’s employee named Jim Cain (pictured above) suggested that sweaters would be a nice way for yinzers to display their hometown pride during the holiday season. The meat and the merch ship nationwide.

Chipped ham is our common thread, after all.