Cooking
California is producing some very good extra virgin olive oil, some using old European varieties of olives, harvested the old fashioned way, and--some high quality extra virgin olive oil harvested in a very modern way, for a fraction of the price. So how is possible to get high quality extra virgin olive oil at a low price? Last week I visited California Olive Ranch, the largest California olive oil producer, and learned just how they do it.
It all comes down to freshness and quantity. California Olive Ranch plants three varieties, arbequina, arbosana from Spain and koroneiki from Greece. Their olive orchards look nothing like what you may have seen in Europe. The olive trees are pruned into a hedge shape that is harvested mechanically, using a harvester specially developed for shaking the trees to get the olives off without damaging them. Less damage means better quality oil.
Here are some numbers for California Olive Ranch:
Their olive trees grow 6-8 feet high
Trees are planted 5 feet apart
There is 13 feet between each row
There are about 675 trees planted per acre
Each tree yields 7-12 pounds of olives
Only 20% of the olive is oil, 55% is water
12 harvesters run 24 hours a day during harvest season
5,000 acres are owned by the company
5,000 acres are managed by 67 farmers who have long term leases
Each truck holds 66,000 pounds of olives
Each truck is unloaded in 35 minutes
Some more facts:
The tree trimmings are mulched
The ground pits and olives, called pomace, is fed to cattle
California Olive Ranch is using bird boxes and buffer zones to minimize the use of pesticides and tests each batch of olives, and has test plots for organic olives
If you ever get a chance to ride a harvester and see the olives jiggle off the trees I highly recommend it! That I got to share the experience with blogging friends Chef John from Food Wishes, Chrystal Baker from The Duo Dishes, Aleta Watson from The Skillet Chronicles, and Jane Bonacci from The Heritage Cook made it all the more sweet!
Speaking of sweet, all exra virgin olive oil should be a balance of fruity, bitter and pungent. The best way to find your favorite, is to taste them...however...California Olive Ranch uses descriptors like intense and bold and mild to help you find one to your taste.
* If you want the freshest olive oil, known as "olio nuovo in Italy, sign up to buy California Olive Ranch's Limited Reserve.
* If you like a buttery mild oil without too much bite, look for their basic extra virgin olive oil
* If you like a fruitier variety, try the Arbequina
* The Arbosana is most complex
* The Miller's blend is bold and balanced (and a favorite of some bloggers, food writers and chefs too.)
My thanks to California Olive Ranch for inviting me up to visit during harvest and letting me sample their fresh oils!
- All About Olio Nuovo
Olio nuovo means "new oil" in Italian. Extra virgin olive oil is the first pressing of olives, and olio nuovo is fresh extra virgin olive oil, the very first pressing of the season. It's typically pressed beginning in late October or early November...
- Olive Oil Cookbooks, Tastings And Events
Fran Gage's The New American Olive Oil includes profiles of artisan producers and 75 recipes, each using extra virgin olive oil. Having tried a selection of the recipes I wholeheartedly recommend the tangy Tabbouleh with Meyer lemon olive oil and...
- Free Extra Virgin Olive Oil!
That's right. Alejandro & Martin are offering gift boxes with a selection of four different 100 ml bottles of their extra virgin olive oils for free to a select audience, you! The oils come from Spain, Greece, Italy and California. I haven't...
-
Funny posts always win me over. If you feel the same, read the ranch dressing post over at I'm Mad and I Eat. If you haven't discovered Ryan Tate's blog Covers, head over there now. He writes about the business of restaurants and is always...
- Trying New Things: Olives
Olives are one of the foods I’ve avoided for a very long time. They pop up from time to time in a salad, pizza or other dish ordered in a restaurant, but I typically pull them out before I start eating and pass them over to someone who appreciates them....
Cooking
California Olive Ranch Extra Virgin Olive Oil
California is producing some very good extra virgin olive oil, some using old European varieties of olives, harvested the old fashioned way, and--some high quality extra virgin olive oil harvested in a very modern way, for a fraction of the price. So how is possible to get high quality extra virgin olive oil at a low price? Last week I visited California Olive Ranch, the largest California olive oil producer, and learned just how they do it.
It all comes down to freshness and quantity. California Olive Ranch plants three varieties, arbequina, arbosana from Spain and koroneiki from Greece. Their olive orchards look nothing like what you may have seen in Europe. The olive trees are pruned into a hedge shape that is harvested mechanically, using a harvester specially developed for shaking the trees to get the olives off without damaging them. Less damage means better quality oil.
Here are some numbers for California Olive Ranch:
Their olive trees grow 6-8 feet high
Trees are planted 5 feet apart
There is 13 feet between each row
There are about 675 trees planted per acre
Each tree yields 7-12 pounds of olives
Only 20% of the olive is oil, 55% is water
12 harvesters run 24 hours a day during harvest season
5,000 acres are owned by the company
5,000 acres are managed by 67 farmers who have long term leases
Each truck holds 66,000 pounds of olives
Each truck is unloaded in 35 minutes
Some more facts:
The tree trimmings are mulched
The ground pits and olives, called pomace, is fed to cattle
California Olive Ranch is using bird boxes and buffer zones to minimize the use of pesticides and tests each batch of olives, and has test plots for organic olives
If you ever get a chance to ride a harvester and see the olives jiggle off the trees I highly recommend it! That I got to share the experience with blogging friends Chef John from Food Wishes, Chrystal Baker from The Duo Dishes, Aleta Watson from The Skillet Chronicles, and Jane Bonacci from The Heritage Cook made it all the more sweet!
Speaking of sweet, all exra virgin olive oil should be a balance of fruity, bitter and pungent. The best way to find your favorite, is to taste them...however...California Olive Ranch uses descriptors like intense and bold and mild to help you find one to your taste.
* If you want the freshest olive oil, known as "olio nuovo in Italy, sign up to buy California Olive Ranch's Limited Reserve.
* If you like a buttery mild oil without too much bite, look for their basic extra virgin olive oil
* If you like a fruitier variety, try the Arbequina
* The Arbosana is most complex
* The Miller's blend is bold and balanced (and a favorite of some bloggers, food writers and chefs too.)
My thanks to California Olive Ranch for inviting me up to visit during harvest and letting me sample their fresh oils!
- All About Olio Nuovo
Olio nuovo means "new oil" in Italian. Extra virgin olive oil is the first pressing of olives, and olio nuovo is fresh extra virgin olive oil, the very first pressing of the season. It's typically pressed beginning in late October or early November...
- Olive Oil Cookbooks, Tastings And Events
Fran Gage's The New American Olive Oil includes profiles of artisan producers and 75 recipes, each using extra virgin olive oil. Having tried a selection of the recipes I wholeheartedly recommend the tangy Tabbouleh with Meyer lemon olive oil and...
- Free Extra Virgin Olive Oil!
That's right. Alejandro & Martin are offering gift boxes with a selection of four different 100 ml bottles of their extra virgin olive oils for free to a select audience, you! The oils come from Spain, Greece, Italy and California. I haven't...
-
Funny posts always win me over. If you feel the same, read the ranch dressing post over at I'm Mad and I Eat. If you haven't discovered Ryan Tate's blog Covers, head over there now. He writes about the business of restaurants and is always...
- Trying New Things: Olives
Olives are one of the foods I’ve avoided for a very long time. They pop up from time to time in a salad, pizza or other dish ordered in a restaurant, but I typically pull them out before I start eating and pass them over to someone who appreciates them....