Olio Verde Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2016 Harvest is now shipping in a new, dark, bottle.

If this is the only extra virgin olive oil you have in your pantry, all of your food will be delectable. Olio Verde pairs well with everything, particularly Sicilian dishes such as crudo, platters of shellfish, caponata, and grilled swordfish with capers.

Olio Verde, one of the first monocultivar olive oils in Italy (made with 100% Nocellara del Belice olives), delivers another successful harvest worthy of celebration. Aromas of tomato leaf and grass hit the nose as if walking through a grassy field on a warm summer day, and a round, buttery nuttiness is accented by the long finish of soft white pepper notes. This is a decidedly flexible extra virgin olive oil, for use with any culinary preparation.

From a territory which was associated with quantity over quality, Gianfranco Becchina was the first producer to raise the bar as far as quality is concerned. Olio Verde is one of the few oils produced from 100% Nocellara del Belice olives, which is both a table olive as well as an oil producing olive, commonly known in the United States as the Castelvetrano olive. Round and plump, the olive is traditionally harvested from October well into December.

Gianfranco Becchina instead decided to harvest the Nocellara from his perfectly-manicured estate when they are still very green, in September, and Olio Verde ("green oil" in Italian) was born. Giving up quantity for quality is a very difficult proposition.The estate now includes one of the most pristine, high-tech frantoio ("olive mill"). An extra feature has been recently added to the production: a sorting table, very similar to those utilized in wine-making where the baskets of olives are emptied and the careful eyes of his well-trained staff, pick-out the unsuitable olives for making his oil. Gianfranco is there overlooking every step of the process and every year, Olio Verde seems to be better than the prior year.

Region: Castelvetrano, Sicily

Olive cultivar: 100% Nocellara del Belice

Estate-bottled

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