Olive Oils

• Olive Oils
• Olive Recipes
• Olives

"Oils aint Oils".....

Cold-pressed, extra virgin is the best olive oil you can buy, but olive oils of that type vary greatly in taste. The nuances of flavor can only be determined by sampling a number of extra virgin oils from different countries. Olive oil is like wine in that it derives its flavor from the environment in which the trees are grown.

The flavors are so numerous and complex that olive oil producers have devised a glossary of tasting terms much like what we have come to expect from vintners. In terms of its production, one California olive oil producer claims that we are exactly where we were with wine in the 1960’s. In the last decade alone, olive oil consumption in our country has more than tripled. Just as in ancient times, this wonderful commodity is now practically indispensable in our diet.

Olive oil is earthy, it is complex, and a superb culinary partner for countless foods. There are abundant uses for it in the kitchen: understanding its background, one can enjoy a slightly ceremonial feeling when using this timeless ingredient. Here is food that shouldn’t be taken for granted.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

- top grade, low acidity, comes from the first pressing of the choicest, handpicked olives. Mechanically pressed, requiring no heat or chemicals. Extra virgin olive oil has natural antioxidants which keep it from going rancid. Flavor, color & consistency vary, like fine wines, due to different olive varieties, location and weather. All Gartelmann Olive Oil is Extra Virgin.

Virgin Olive Oil

- slightly more acidity, pressed from olives that are not necessarily top grade, may be from a second or third pressing of pulp, also mechanically pressed. This grade and extra virgin are the only truly "cold pressed" oils.

"Pure" Olive Oil

- Also called commercial grade oil. It is extracted from pulp and pits left after the second pressing of lower quality olives. Heat, high pressure and solvents are used. Sometimes a small amount of better quality olive oil is blended in. "Pure" refers to the fact that no non-olive oils are mixed in.