Why Extra Virgin Olive Oil?

At Olive Oils Direct we strive to bring you the finest olive oils from Italy.

There are some any terms and labels with "cold press", "first press", "virgin olive oil", "extra virgin olive oil", "EVOO" etc. it can all get a little overwhelming.

I am going to attempt to try and unravel this and help you understand the different terms, how olive oils is made and the labeling of the final product - extra virgin olive oil.

 

The International Olive Oil Council

There are many governing bodies which attempt to define olive oil. The European Communities has a different definition than the International Olive Oil Council (IOOC). Most countries use the IOOC standards.

Olive oil is classified by how it was produced, by its chemistry, and by its flavor.

Retail grades in IOOC member nations

As IOOC standards are complex, the labels in stores clearly show an oil's grade:

• Extra-virgin olive oil comes from the first pressing of the olives, contains no more than 0.8% acidity, and is judged to have a superior taste. There can be no refined oil in extra-virgin olive oil.
• Virgin olive oil has an acidity less than 2%, and judged to have a good taste. There can be no refined oil in virgin olive oil.
• Pure olive oil. Oils labeled as Pure olive oil or Olive oil are usually a blend of refined olive oil and one of the above two categories of virgin olive oil.
• Olive oil is a blend of virgin oil and refined oil, containing no more than 1.5% acidity. It commonly lacks a strong flavor.
  Olive-pomace oil is a blend of refined pomace olive oil and possibly some virgin oil. It is fit for consumption, but it may not be called olive oil.
• Olive-pomace oil is rarely found in a grocery store; it is often used for certain kinds of cooking in restaurants.
• Lampante oil is olive oil not used for consumption; lampante comes from olive oil's ancient use as fuel in oil-burning lamps. Lampante oil is mostly used in the industrial market.

 

Label wording

Olive oil vendors choose the wording on their labels very carefully.

• "100% Pure Olive Oil" is often the lowest quality available in a retail store: better grades would have "virgin" on the label.
• "Made from refined olive oils" suggests that the essence was captured, but in fact means that the taste and acidity were chemically produced.
• "Light olive oil" actually means refined olive oil, not a lower fat content. All olive oil has 120 calories per tablespoon (34 J/ml).
• "From hand-picked olives" may indicate that the oil is of better quality, since producers harvesting olives by mechanical methods are inclined to leave olives to over-ripen in order to increase yield.
• "First cold press" means that the oil in bottles with this label is the first oil that came from the first press of the olives. The word cold is important because if heat is used, the olive oil's chemistry is changed.
• "Bottled in Italy" or "Packed in Italy" does not necessarily mean that the olive oil originated in Italy. Back or side labels indicate the origin of the olive oil which is often a mixture of oils from several nations.
  
  

FROM IOOC STANDARDS DOCUMENT:

Virgin olive oils
This oil is obtained only from the olive, the fruit of the olive tree, using solely mechanical or other physical means in conditions, particularly thermal conditions, which do not alter the oil in any way. It has not undergone any treatment other than washing, decanting, centrifuging and filtering. It excludes oils obtained by the use of solvents or re-esterification methods, and those mixed with oils from other sources.

Obsolete or unregulated terms

Cold pressed Olive Oil

"Cold pressed" is an anachronistic and largely unregulated label description for olive oil. Fifty years ago when most oil was made in vertical presses, the paste was pressed to make olive oil (first press - see below) and then mixed with hot water or steam and pressed again to remove more oil. This "second pressing" was not as good; the heat had evaporated some of the delicate flavors.

Today the paste is almost always warmed to room temperature during the malaxation process before being centrifuged using horizontal decanters (Olives are harvested in the winter when it is cold). According to IOOC regulations this is still considered "cold pressed". Heating the paste excessively increases yield but degrades flavor. Producers would lose money by attempting to extract a little more oil by overheating and degrading the flavor of the oil to the point where it would not qualify as more profitable extra virgin.

Regulation 1019 of 2002 determines the use of the term "Cold Pressed" in the EU. During Malaxation and Extraction the olive paste must be kept under 27ºC (80ºF).After the oil is pressed out of the paste, the dry pomace (pits and flesh) is sometimes sold to refineries where steam and solvents are used to remove any residual oil. This oil is called olive pomace oil.

First Press

First press is no longer an official definition for olive oil. A century ago, oil was pressed in screw or hydraulic presses. The paste was subjected to increasingly high pressures with subsequent degradation in the flavor of the oil. Today the vast majority of oil is made in continuous centrifugal presses. There is no second pressing.

Lite or Light Olive Oil

In the U.S., flavorless and often low quality (refined) oil is sold as "lite" or "light" oil for a premium price. The "light" designation refers to flavor, not caloric content, as all olive oil has the same amount of calories. There is no official definition of lite or light

Blended Olive Oil

Most supermarket brands of olive oil are blended from oil from many different varieties, regions, and even countries. Because olive oil tastes differently year to year from the same grove due to weather, to create an oil that tastes the same blenders must take oil from many sources and come up with a recipe to create the same taste.

Blending some oil high in polyphenols with one which does not will increase its shelf life.

Sometimes olive oil is blended with canola or other vegetable oils. This should be stated on the label. Illegal blending of cheaper hazelnut oil can be profitable for the unscrupulous and can be difficult to detect.

Unfiltered Olive Oil

Unfiltered oil contains small particles of olive flesh. Olive Oil aficionados claim this adds additional flavor. Unfortunately it causes a sediment to form at the bottom of the bottle which can become rancid, negatively impacting flavor and shelf life.

Unfiltered oil should be carefully stored and used within 3-6 months of bottling.

Early Harvest Olive Oil ( Fall Harvest Olive Oil )

Olives reach their full size in the fall but may not fully ripen from green to black until late winter. Green olives have slightly less oil, more bitterness and can be higher in polyphenols. The oil tends to be more expensive because it takes more olives to make a bottle of oil. Many people like the peppery and bitter quality of early harvest oil. Flavor notes of grass, green, green leaf, pungent, astringent are used to describe early harvest fall oils. Because of the higher polyphenols and antioxidants, early harvest oils often have a longer shelf life and are blended with late harvest oils to improve their shelf life.

Late Harvest Olive Oil ( Winter Harvest Olive Oil)

The fruit is picked black and ripe. The fruit may have a little more oil but it is risky because waiting longer into the winter increases the risk the fruit will be damaged by frost. Late harvest or "Winter" fruit is more ripe so like other ripe fruit it has a light, mellow taste with little bitterness and more floral flavors. Flavor notes of peach, melon, perfumy, apple, banana, buttery, fruity, rotund, soave and sweet are often used.

How do they make Extra Virgin Olive Oil?

How long has Olive Oil been around?

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