traveling online: How to Taste Olive Oil

How to Taste Olive Oil

February 02, 2006 | by Wayne

Despite being a vegetarian for nearly twenty years, I've never considered going vegan. This year a friend jokingly dared me to embark with her on a New Year's diet resolution: go vegan. I quickly accepted, but only for the month of January. Regardless of my passion for yogurt, I didn't think being vegan for a month would be a great challenge.

And mostly it wasn't. There were no undeniable cravings for smoked gouda, honey or gelato. Much of the switch involves reading labels of processed foods, where animal substances sometimes sneak in, added to items that you wouldn't expect.

Everything was going smoothly until the San Francisco Fancy Food Show. This orgy of tastings, culinary trends, entrepreneurialism and marketing takes place across miles of booths under harsh convention center lighting. Last year I accepted everything that was handed to me. It took me a week of drinking mineral water and soaking in a teak-lined sauna to expunge bite-sized portions of chocolate truffles, cheese, gelato, drinkable chocolate, candy, cakes, sparkling juices, caramel sauces, tortes, dips, oils and vinegars.

I welcomed the challenge of being vegan at the food show. Limitations offer focus. I'd have a smaller food coma and more time to walk the aisles. I'm happy to report that I remained (to my knowledge) completely vegan, despite weak knees in front of the gleaming white Fage yogurt booth.

One of the highlights of last year was a booth set up by a tourist and producers group representing balsamic vinegar makers in and around Modena. They had a counter and offered a tasting of a handful of premium vinegars, pointing out the differences that represent different quality grades of balsamic vinegar. I spoke with a professional balsamic vinegar taster. If I had the courage to drop everything and pursue a new life I would learn Italian and take the course to be a balsamic vinegar sommelier (or at least travel to Modena and take one of the group's two-day tasting classes). Unfortunately the masters of balsamic did not return this year.

Inspired by the balsamic tasting experience and the limitations of being vegan, I decided at this year's show I would focus on oils. Oils are butter for vegans, and in this setting olive oil was the most visible of them all.

This is an oil that has been used for cooking for many thousands of years, as well as lighting lamps and as part of religious ceremonies. You weren't reminded of this history very often at the food show.

The mantra surrounding olive oil is summed up in one word: Grassy.

After the first five booths, besides tooth picks and slices of baguette for dipping, I found every person representing olive oil producers used the word "grassy" multiple times. The exception was certain foreign producers, whose oil tastes "gassy."

The word "grassy" seems as useful as "fruity" is when describing wine. It took generations of writers thousands of intoxicated evenings to rummage around their altered imaginations to find better words than "fruity." And it required even more hung-over mornings spent settling on which of these words could be used with a straight face.

Appreciating a good olive oil starts with looking at color and consistency. Professional tasters tend to ignore the color - it can be tampered with. But for the rest of us, olive oil should not be clear or white, which indicates it is refined and not from the first pressing. The spectrum of colors displayed by quality olive oils is between a grassy yellow and a frumpy green.

Quickly downing shots of vinegar, the balsamic sommelier at last year's food show would have shamed any frat boy. Indeed, low grade balsamic vinegar can sear your throat with its acidity like a flaming shot of grain alcohol at a Delta house soiree. A substantial shot of olive oil is a unique experience for the mouth and palette in a completely different way that will certainly surprise you. (It's nowhere near as surprising as eating a stick of butter). Buy the best quality oil you can find (many are listed below) and try it.

The word "peppery" is another popular word used to describe the flavor of olive oil. This word doesn't adequately describe the bitter aftertaste sometimes experienced a long ten or so seconds after sipping a generous sample of oil. If it's your first time taking a shot of olive oil, you'll be forgiven for watery eyes or even a minor coughing fit. But it's not the experience of having pepper dust sneak up your nose. Olive oil isn't a light dusting; it's a viscous substance that takes over your mouth. It threatens to suffocate your tongue.

Olive oil is an incredibly competitive global industry that serves consumers who might not know the difference between virgin and extra virgin olive oil, or realize that many "Italian" oils are produced from olives imported from Greece. An Italian association called Unaprol held an educational session to educate press and consumers and promote their quality standards. They've even gone so far as to create a tracking feature on their web site that allows consumers to enter a bottle code that traces oil from olive to bottle.

During the presentation, Fulvio Genovese demonstrated the proper way to taste olive oil. Before tasting, put the oil in a shot glass and warm it in your hand so it rises a bit above room temperature. Smell it. The smell is usually dominated by the "G" word.

Just as spitting wine correctly is not as easy as the spitting you learned to love as a child, tasting olive oil is not as simple as sipping it. Through his translator, it took Fulvio several attempts to explain the technique. You want to quickly suck the oil over your palette with a lot of air, so it evenly coats your mouth and doesn't settle on your tongue.

It wasn't Fulvio's fault that we didn't learn quickly. Most people in the room understood him the first time. The problem was that this tasting technique produces a sound and facial expression that you'd only want to make in the privacy of your own home. Hearing a roomful of novices making this sound was disturbing - the sound Hannibal Lector made during his fava bean monologue poorly imitated by twenty people.

After the fourth or fifth taste, it was possible to detect flavors beyond the lawn. Fulvio alerted us to thistle in one oil. Hints of artichoke, bitter almond were found in another. One oil from Sicily had hints of green tomato, though to my tongue it was more like tomato vine.

In the case of olive oil, trees that are harvested earlier rather than when the olives are overripe (and easier to shake free using modern machinery) generally produce higher quality oil. For this reason, flavors of slightly unripe fruit and vegetables are to be expected and even desired.

Olive Oil Round-up

Doing a serious tasting on the show floor is impossible. Olive oil producers are spread across a giant convention floor. The noise, smells and visual distractions of the show make it difficult to concentrate.

International

Colonna
Marina Colonna was part of the Italian presentation at the food show and explained her farm's history and producing techniques. Her product is a textbook example of a high quality Italian olive oil. It can be found at certain Williams-Sonoma stores.

Halutza Oil
Grown in the Negev desert of Israel on the Kibbutz Revivim, they use salt water for irrigation.

Lykovouno
Lykovouno is Greek olive oil that is produced from a single variety of koroneiki olive.

Terra Medi
Koroneiki olives from the same region of Sparta are also used for Terra Medi's imported organic olive oil (pictured in main photo).

Traditions du Liban
Olives have been grown in Lebanon for thousands of years. Traditions du Liban is a project supported by USAID which selects olives from twelve Lebanese regions. The selection process results in seven varities. Diversity in climate and altitude across the regions produces flavors that range from hints of green banana to artichoke.

Nunez de Prado
Francisco Nunez de Prado was very adamant that a healthy dose of his family's olive oil should be tasted. I believe he was tasting out of a champange flute, but I could be mistaken. Hints of unripe apples.

Castillo de Tabernas
This farm is located near the only desert in Europe, which provides the terroir in their oil. Their web site features traceability for more information on the oil you buy. They boast their product goes from olives being picked to oil bottled in under eight hours.

Valderrama
Most olive oils are mixed from up to a dozen type of olives. Valderrama has a unique line, in that they offers oils based on individual olives (Arbequina, Hojiblanca, Picudo, Ocal). These oils let you taste each olive.

Ourogal
This is a high quality Portugeuse olive oil.

Nelson Olives
Nelson Olives have been producing oil for five years. The oil shares the quality of the Australian oils (below), with a taste on the light and bright side.

Australia

Australia will be a major force in the production of olive oil in the near future. Using their wine industry as a model, Australian companies have relatively young olive trees, but rely on modern agriculture techniques to produce a quality product. Currently a good number of these products are not sold in the United States. With smart packaging design and friendly people to sell the product, there's a good chance you will see more Australian olive oil in your local upscale supermarket.

The Australian oil tends to be on the bright side in flavor. While none of these oils are quite as complex and hearty as their European counterparts, they are worth seeking out.

EvooRoo
Grown and bottled in Boort, Victoria.

Cobram Estate
Producing oil for about ten years, Cobram Estate uses Italian, Spanish and Israeli olives.

Kyneton Olives
Offers an organic extra virgin oil.

Silvertree
Fresh and light oil in bright bottles.

Victorian Olive Groves
Wineries have winemakers that blend grapes, Peter Caird is the principal oilmaker at Victorian groves. They also co-brand a label with Australian chef Stefano de Pieri.

California

California companies have been producing quality olive oil for longer than the Australians, aiming to produce oils in the Tuscan style. In this month's issue of the Atlantic Monthly, Corby Kummer profiles this industry (subscriber only), which can be a difficult business, as the land and labor costs are high and consumers aren't always as eager to pay for quality oil as they are for quality wines.

Pasolivo
Based in Paso Robles, this handpicked and unfiltered oil is made in the Tuscan style. Unlike many producers they label their bottles to indicate which harvest you are buying. Look for December 2005.

Quail Grove
This is a 600 tree farm in Napa that uses four types of olives to produce a tasty, fresh oil. In their first year of production, Quail Grove is one of the newest California producers.

McEvoy Ranch
Six types of olives, Organic, equipment imported from Italy. Profiled in the Atlantic article. Great oil.

B.R. Cohn Winery
This is a Sonoma Valley winery that also produces an organic olive oil.

Bariani
Produced in California by an Italian family since the early 1990s. Despite world-wide attention, they still have a booth at the San Francisco farmer's market. Bariani may or may not be the best California olive oil, but it is a great oil that is a daily favorite at 101HQ.

Stella Cadente
Founded in 1999, Stella Cadente produces several blends of olive oil, including an organic blend pressed on a stone mill (L'Autunno Blend) and a blend which it claims is the "screaming eagle" of olive oils (Estate Reserve). They also produce fruit oils (including blood orange and Meyer Lemon).

Other Notable Oils

Virgin Pecan Oil
Made in Winnsboro, Louisana, this is a refined oil with a high smoke point. It's ideal for dipping sauces or vinegarettes. Despite being refined, offers a decent trace of pecan flavor. We agreed that we'd like to taste an unrefined version.

Republic of Tea, tea oil Cold pressed from seeds of tea plants from the Jiang Xi Province, this oil is still something of a mystery - it was not being sampled at the show. A pamphlet handed out indicates Bay Area chefs cooking Asian cuisines use it for stir frying, because of it's flash point of 485 degrees.

La Tourangelle
This collection of oils includes walnut, almond and hazelnut begs to be experimented with.

Brookfarm Macademia nut oil
Search out their premium grade oil. The lemon myrtle infused is a noteworthy exception to the flavored oils as there is not overpowering an use of flavor. They also make great little spiced packs of roasted macadamia nuts ("bush pepper spice" is the best one.)

Olivado avocado oil
This avocado oil is refined, but has a unique flavor and a high smoke point. Perhaps a good match for grilling veggies.

Postscript: When I returned to my computer after the food show, I exchanged a few instant messages with my vegan resolution friend. She confessed that while I was resisting free truffles at the food show, she had fallen off the vegan wagon, eating a shrimp dish and mint gelato.