Posts Tagged Information

A visit to the local market for olive oil may make your head spin. With dozens of choices, which one is best? Which has the most healing properties? Which is best right out of the bottle, and which is best for cooking? Fear not, because your olive […]

Organic Olive Oil: All plants have natural enemies, and olive trees are no different. Olives are susceptible to a pest known as the olive fly, which lives inside the olive and makes a feast of the fruit. Fungus is another adversary of olives, although olive flies are […]

Color Considerations: Green olive oils come from unripe olives and impart a slightly bitter, pungent flavor. Emerald-tinged oils have fruity, grassy, and peppery flavors that dominate the foods in which you use them. These oils are great with neutral-flavored foods that allow their bold flavors to shine. […]

Lower-quality oils: Some olive oil is further refined after the first pressing. These three types of oils can no longer bear the title “virgin.” When virgin oils are not fit for human consumption (because of poor flavor, an acidity level greater than 3.3 percent, or an unpleasant […]

At the head of the olive oil class sit the extra-virgins, followed closely by the virgins. The difference between two oils and where they rank in the following hierarchy may be just half a percentage point of acidity. However, that is all it takes to distinguish between […]

Marking the Grades: There are three basic grades of edible olive oil, and several types within each grade. Extra virgin includes “premium extra virgin” and “extra virgin”; virgin comprises “fine virgin,” “virgin,” and “semifine virgin”; and olive oil includes what used to be called “pure olive oil” […]

Where in the World? When buying olive oil, you’ll see varieties from all over the globe. Most of the world’s supply is produced from olives grown in Spain, Italy, and Greece, but other areas, including France and California, are in on the fun, too. Here’s what you […]

Factors determining taste of Olive Oil: Rich, beautiful, and fragrant, olive oil is much like wine — taste is a matter of personal preference. The many variables that go into the production of olive oil yield dramatic differences in color, aroma, and flavor. And several names are […]

Greece is the world’s third largest producer of olive oil and the world’s largest exporter of extra virgin olive oil.  Its extra virgin olive oil is so good that it is exported even to countries such as Italy and Spain. Olive oil is extremely high in oleic acid which […]