•History •About Olive Oil •Olive Oil quality •Glossary

Abuot Olive Oil

In the last 4000 years the Mediterranean civilizations have used olive oil for the most despairing reasons: as detergents, as lubricants, as combustibles, as a means of exchange or as medicine. Now the rest of the world is getting to know olive oil, one of the more versatile oils to be extracted from a fruit.
Medical studies in the 1970s revealed that Mediterranean populations had a lower rate of cardiac pathologies among all the western populations. This phenomenon was attributed to the large consumption of olive oil, which is made up of 77% monounsaturated fats, considered to be the "good" fats. In addition, olive oil is rich in antioxidising properties that prevent the hardening of arteries.
Not so long ago, populations outside the Mediterranean tended to think of olive oil as something exotic, an ingredient used only in ethnic cuisine. Typically, those people tasted this product for the first time in restaurants, where it was often altered with various less expensive oils and therefore was thought of unjustly as a less digestible product.The best olive oil is extra virgin olive oil, meaning it is in no way altered. In order to achieve this classification, the oil must be extracted only by mechanical means.
The oil must not be heated during the process of extraction (cold pressed) and its acidity gradient must be less than 1.1%. It must possess certain requirements of aroma and taste that are subject to evaluation by a committee of professional tasters. This oil is known in Italian as Olio Extra Vergine d'Oliva.
The true lover of olive oil knows that that Extra Virgin is by far the best oil in terms of quality, taste and nutritional supply. There can be variations of color and taste in preferred Extra Virgin olive oil due to the particularity of the extraction process. On the other hand, the average consumer does not like surprises and seems to prefer oils with a more standard taste even if lower in quality.