What is gourmet olive oil?

The liquid gold culture has evolved over the years, giving rise to gourmet oils, a product made with the utmost care to make the enjoyment of our palate. In the next blog we will talk about what we mean by gourmet olive oil, the keys to differentiate it and a list with the best variety that you can put on your table

Gourmet olive oil is born with the need for a market in which consumers are increasingly demanding. The olive juice is considered as a basic element of the Mediterranean diet, so an increasingly specialized product is demanded.

In fact, there are more and more gourmets that have an oleoteca in their house where they keep bottles of the best vintages acquired in specialized stores such as olive oil stores.

For the preparation of Gourmet olive oil, it is important to know when the olive harvest period is. In the northern hemisphere, it is collected between the months of October and January, while in the southern hemisphere it is collected between the months of February and May.

What is the process of making Gourmet olive oil?

In the case of Premium oils, the olive is usually harvested between November and December to obtain a more fruity oil, with a greater number of antioxidants and a lower percentage of natural acidity.

The olive used for Gourmet oil is olive flight, not soil. In the olive harvest, the difference between both methods is very significant. The flying olive is collected directly from the tree, so it does not touch the ground, avoiding remains of stones, sand, dirt, etc ...

If the olive touches the ground, it is possible that with the contact with the stones and the sand, the skin breaks before the oil extraction process, which damages its quality in the long term

The green tone of the olive is the best indicator that it is at its perfect moment to be harvested. When the olive matures excessively, it loses part of its properties and its color tends to darken.

Why does this happen? The ripe olive offers more oil, but its quality is lower. The moment of extraction is key to know with what type of oil we are going to find. Time does not cure everything, it depends what you do with it.

"To produce a gourmet olive oil, the exact time of ripeness is the basis of the whole process" 

Another fundamental aspect is the tools with which the extraction is done. Methods should be used that do not damage the fruit, "ordeño" being the main technique.

The "ordeño" is about collecting olive from the olive tree manually, detaching it from the branches without the olive touching the surface. It is a process that requires more labor and a null mechanization, but it is also more respectful with the tree and the environment

For much lower quality oil, much more aggressive techniques such as vareo or vibration are used.

The transfer to the oil mill (the mill where it turns the olive into oil) must be done within a period of less than twelve hours after its extraction. The industrial methods involve subjecting the olives to a cleaning process, to eliminate the olive leaves that are then used as animal feed for the area.

This process that damages the properties of the olive, does not occur in the preparation of gourmet olive oil, because having been extracted manually, they do not have leaves that must be removed. Directly the process of crushing the olives is carried out, separating the bone from the resulting mass.

This mass is transferred to the blenders, where it is mixed with cold water, at a temperature of about 20 degrees. That is another key to Gourmet oil. If it is carried out at a higher temperature, more oil is obtained, but of inferior quality.

After the dough is beaten, it passes to the dencanter centrifuge, a machine used to separate the solid from the liquid. That is, the oil and water are separated from the olive and mixed with water at room temperature, with the aim of removing the water and washing the oil.

From here, the process of decanting the oil takes place. The virgin olive oil will remain at rest for a few hours to acquire the ambient temperature and the microparticles of the substance remain in suspension.

The gourmet olive oil needs a natural decantation, that is, the one that occurs over time, without the need to use industrial devices that fulfill this function.

Deposits are withdrawn after a certain time. If they remain in the substance for a long time, it may lose quality. It is then when the oil goes to the stainless steel containers with the maximum guarantees of hygiene, preserved with food nitrogen, which protects it against the damage that may be caused by external elements such as light, temperature or air. The packaging is another of the aspects to which the specialists give great importance. Olive oil bottles are a decorative element on your table and kitchen, and their shapes are studied by the best graphic or product designers.

The best Gourmet olive oil

As you have read before, the best oils are those that are made early harvest. This is the key to selecting one olive oil from another. Here you have a selection of the best gourmet olive oil:

Oleícola Jaén

Oleícola Jaén is one of the highest quality brands in the world of gourmet olive oil. Their olives are cultivated through short and very frequent irrigations, which allow the perfect development of both the tree and the fruit. The transfer of the olive after its extraction is done in less than an hour, which allows the extraction in cold of excellent broths of emerald greens and aromas of freshly cut grass

Have you noticed the beauty of the bottle? Its modern style will bring to your table a casual and completely modern style

Supremo Hojiblanca

Do you love oils with a fruity touch? I think you just found the gourmet olive oil that best goes with you. Ideal for summer salads and the special touch of gazpachos, this oil comes from a harvest collected in mid-October that explains its fruity character.

In addition, its orange opaque bottle gives the unique design that differentiates this gourmet brand.

Olecampo Premium Arbequina

This oil extracted in Torredelcampo (Jaén) has many fans within the world of Gourmet olive oil. Its variety of Arbequina has a color that oscillates between green and yellowish green, with aroma of green fruit and almond.

Its itching and bitterness is very low, highlighted by its fruity flavor of green grass, sweet, with notes of almond and fig, which gives it a harmonious character of great complexity.

Its exquisite taste is closely related to its production process. From its entry into the mill, the olive is ground by a continuous system in cold, always less at 20 º that generates less oil, but always of the highest quality

Aove Águra

Are you thinking about giving Gourmet oil? Think that it is a gift that will be welcomed in all houses, and with the new designs you will remain as a person who knows how to take care of the details that make the difference. A gourmet oil that stands out for its packaging is Aove Águra, which will make you find the perfect cases for every occasion as well as offering an unbeatable quality.

If you still think about buying gourmet olive oil and you do not know how to decide, get in touch with us and we will help you make the best decision. OlivaDelSur, an olive oil store with better products and a familiar and specialized treatment. Call us!