LOCATION AND CLIMATE

 

As you might expect, olives grown in cooler areas where there is more moisture (rainfall and dew) exhibit leaner, more restrained characteristics.  This doesn’t however mean that great oil can now be made in Iceland – you need a minimum amount of sunshine to make your Extra Virgin Olive Oil taste remarkable, similarly to tomatoes or stone fruit.

Olive trees are sensitive to winter freeze (the Casaliva cultivar is more resistant to cold, hence being grown in the Garda region).  It is also easier to farm organically where the climate is more stable and less chemical sprays are required to keep the trees healthy.

OLIVE MATURITY

 

Here’s the thing – all olives are green.  When they become fully mature, they turn black.
Olive maturity at the time of harvest is a major factor in flavour and quality: olives harvested earlier (green olives) feature more bitter, grassy characteristics, with lower yields and with the highest anti-oxidant content.  The oil is a much more intense green colour and has a longer shelf-life.  In terms of production, milling can take longer with green olives (a longer malaxation - the action of slowly churning milled olives to release droplets of oil - is needed and can be more complicated) but the results are far superior!  Don’t choose olive oil from over mature fruit: it lacks all the potential goodness and flavour.

ATTENTION TO DETAIL IN GROVE AND MILL

 

People who care passionately about what they make and follow it personally every day have the capacity to create products with far higher quality, with integrity, and that taste of where they come from.  They are also able to do this by caring for the environment they inhabit.

FRANTOIO DI RIVA BOX

This box contains 6 bottles of extra virgin olive oil made exclusively by Frantoio di Riva from groves on the banks of lake Garda.

Frantoio di Riva, 46°PARALLELO green label x 3 bottles (50cl)
Frantoio di Riva, 46°PARALLELO organic white label x 1 bottle (50cl)
Frantoio di Riva, 46°PARALLELO blue label x 1 bottle (50cl)
Frantoio di Riva, ULIVA Garda Trentino DOP x 1 bottle (50cl)

September 27, 2021 In Autumn, Recipes
SPRING | SUMMER | AUTUMN | WINTER

Autumnal Salad of Leeks, Fennel and Cannellini

The weather is just gradually turning here and so a warm salad is just what is needed in the middle of the day.

This is super easy, nutritious and the flavours are brought alive with the addition of a decisive olive oil such as Moraiolo or Frantoio.

 

In a large frying pan sauté 2 sliced leeks and a couple of small fennel bulbs. Season with salt and be generous with the olive oil. When they are starting to give, add in some pre-cooked cannellini (from a jar works just as well if you haven’t had chance to soak/cook yourself), then a dash of white wine to create a sauce or dressing.  Check for seasoning.  Just before serving, stir through some lambs leaf lettuce and finish with a generous serving of EVOO.

Delicious with a slice of toasted sourdough.

 

This warm salad is full of base notes and so you should combine it with a decisive oil such as Il Sincero from Marco Viola in Umbria or Selezione Aline from Frantoio Pennita.