Olive Oil

Olive oil will be one of our major products. Olive oil is a little bit like wine: there are many different varieties and depending on personal preferences and taste you may like the one more than another, may give the preference to one over the other. Whatever your preferences are, there are some basics about olive oil you should know.

Knowledge

The best way to get acquainted with the topic "olive oil" is to read the article on Wikipedia.
However, we will try to get you further in-depth on this topic as there are some misunderstandings and wrong believes.
The most common misconception is about extra virgin olive oil. Undoubtedly, extra virgin olive oil is the crown but not necessarily suitable for any purposes. For example, the smoke point of extra virgin olive oil is 10% lower than the one of refined olive oil. That means, for your daily cooking a good quality refined olive oil may give you a much better economic value and still being able to enjoy all the advantages olive oil gives you.

Some Facts

Wikipedia

• In 2000, the area under olive groves in the EU was approximately 5,163,000 hectares, roughly 4 % of the utilisable agricultural area, of which 48 % were in Spain and 22.5 % were in Italy.
• Approximately 2.5 million producers — roughly one third of all EU farmers — are involved, with 1,160,000 in Italy, 840,000 in Greece, 380,000 in Spain, and 130,000 in Portugal.
• France, the fifth producing country in the EU, has a much smaller number of growers.(1)

Looking at these figures, Spain is by far not only the larges producer of olive oil world wide (roughly 45% of the world's olive oil production) but also the most efficient: 19 hectares are cultivated by one person, compared to Italy with one person per one hectare!

(1) Source: European Union

Spanish Olive Oil Varieties

What is Spain´s olive oil contribution to this growing trend?  The country has approximately 1,800 factories dedicated to the production of virgin olive oil, half of which are located in Andalucia;  308 million olive trees , (185 million in Andalucia); and produces 830,000 tons of olive oil annually, nothing less than thirty four percent of the world production. Due to Spain´s diverse climate, microclimate and rich soils, a great variety of olives are cultivated nationally which lead to the production of olive oils with a wide range of flavours and aroma. Spain is the only country in the world that cultivates as many as 260 olive varieties. The most representative varieties available in Spain with regards to olive oil production are picual, hojiblanca, cornicabra, arbequina, lechin and Empeltre. Varieties such as Manzanilla and Gordal are commonly used in the production of olives, but they are not mentioned here because their use in oil production is not as common.

Picual is the most important olive variety in the world and is the most widely cultivated variety in Spain. Almost fifty percent of the virgin olive oil produced here is obtained from the Picual variety. Ripe Picual olives are black, medium-sized, with an elevated fat content of up to 27 percent. Olive oil produced from the Picual variety has a fruity flavour with hints of almond and an aroma of apple. From a chemical view point, these oils are excellent due to the composition of fatty acids and the abundant presence of natural antioxidants. Picual olives are most widely cultivated in Jaén, although production regions extend to the provinces of Córdoba, Granada, and part of Cuidad Real. The majority of the new olive groves in Andalucia are made up of Picual olive trees due to their early, high, constant production.

The Hojiblanca variety originated from Lucena (Córdoba) and is widely produced throughout Andalucia, particularly in the provinces of Sevilla, southern Córdoba, and the northern part of Málaga. It represents 16% of the olive production in Andalucia. Hojiblanca gets its name from the light color of the tree leaves (hojiblanca=white leaf). Collection time is later for this variety than others (March-April), leading to a lower production rate. Hojiblanca olives are violet-to-black in color when ripe, large in size, and tend to be more difficult to pick, rarely falling from the trees on their own. This variety produces an average amount of oil (18-20%), which tends to have vegetable flavours, be smooth on the palate, with an almondy aftertaste, The oils are relatively stable due to their low level of antioxidants and high amount of vitamin E. Hojiblanca oils have a lower level of saturated fat relative to other varieties.

The Cornicabra variety comes from Mora de Toledo, with production regions extending today from Toledo to Cuidad Real, where almost all of the oil comes from this variety. This variety is second in terms of land area used for its cultivation in Spain, but third as far as production is concerned. Cornicabra oils produce a good amount of oil (22%) and are very stable due to the high content of the antioxidant polifenole and the low amount of tocoferole. When handled correctly, the Cornicabra variety produces high quality virgin olive oils. Cornicabra oils are golden yellow in color, fragrant and fruity, sweet on the palate, slightly bitter, and moderately spicy.

The Arbequina variety comes from Arbeca, in the province of Lérida, where it gets its name. Cultivation zones extend from Lérida to Tarragona, passing through Zaragoza and Huesca. Arbequina olives are small, making mechanical collection difficult. They are widely recognized, however, for their early production, which leads to high production rates and large amounts of oil. Oils produced from the Arbequina variety are fruity, greenish in color, slightly bitter, sweet, and spicy. Due to their chemical composition, these oils are more delicate than others with respect to oxidation. Arbequina oils are known for their outstanding quality.

The Lechín variety originated in Córdoba and Sevilla, although today its cultivation is primarily focused in Sevilla and the outskirts of Córdoba, Cádiz, and the Málaganian town of Ronda. Lechín olives ripen relatively early in the season and produce an average amount of oil. Ripe Lechíns are black and small in size, making it a common variety used in the making of table olives. Oils produced from the Lechín variety are stable, greenish-yellow in color, both bitter and sweet in flavour, with good organaleptic characteristics. The Empeltre olive variety is characteristic of the community of Aragón, originating in Pedrola. Its cultivation zones extend to the provinces of Logroño and Teruel, through the Ebro Valley to the province of Tarragona.

Empeltre olives are of average size when ripe and produce an average amount of oil (18%). The oils are generally pale yellow in color, with a sublte fruity aroma, and are extremely sweet and pleasant on the palate, never spicy or bitter. This variety is well-known for its high productivity and the excellent quality of the oils it creates.

Source: MarketUno