CULTIVAR

 

There are around 800 different Olive Cultivars in Italy alone, many of which are used for Olive Oil. Similarly to grape varieties in wine, the Olive cultivar influences the flavour profile of your oil.  Different cultivars, depending on size of fruit, thickness of the skin, composition of the pulp can produce different yields, varying concentrations of anti-oxidants and overall different quality levels.

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)

The Frantoi & Strazzanti Sicilian Tasting Experience

Frantoi has teamed up with Sicilian food experience specialist Strazzanti for a drop-in tasting of Sicilian Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Sicilian food.  This zoom based session will take place on Tuesday 15th of December at 7 pm (UK time) hosted by Frantoi founder Elizabeth and Strazzanti founder Emilia.

 

Elizabeth and Emilia will take you on a wonderful journey through Sicily’s flavours with Strazzanti’s pestos and sauces and Frantoi’s selection of Sicilian olive oils. You will learn how to taste Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO), which flavours to expect from Sicilian olive oils, why freshly milled EVOO is a super food, how to cook and pair EVOO with food.  You will also learn about the dominant flavours of Sicilian food, how Strazzanti brings these to you home and how best to use their wonderful sauces.

 

You will be charmed, have fun, and learn tonnes of new things about EVOO, Sicily and it’s flavours.

 

Your delivery will include:

 

6 x 500 ml bottles of freshly milled Sicilian Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Frantoi Cutrera

Each olive oil will be a monocultivar, indigenous to Sicily, freshly pressed from the 2020 harvest and full of its own character.  We will taste each oil individually to determine the different characteristics and then put them alongside the wonderful stuzzichini from Strazzanti.  This gives you a full journey around the flavours of Sicily, it’s a unique chance to taste these oils all together.

 

Il Piccolo Pacchetto Strazzanti, which includes:
1 x Jar Strazzanti Pesto di Pistachio
1 x Jar Strazzanti Pesto alla Trapanese
1 x Jar Strazzanti Pesto di Finocchietto Selvatico
1 x 200g pack Evoo Lingue crisp flatbread
1 x Apple for cleansing the palate
1 x Strazzanti Cubaita Siciliana for something sweet to finish

 

The interactive zoom tasting will last for around 1 hour.  This tasting experience is only available in the UK.  Click here to book or email us for more information: tastings@frantoi.org

 

 

Strazzanti is a family business founded by the Three Strazzanti sisters, who create experiences & memories from the Food of their Sicilian Heritage.
British born with Sicilian & Neapolitan parents, food has always been at the heart of their family life, and a source of many nostalgic, warm memories. They draw on these memories, the native ingredients, the people, the nature and spirit of Sicily as the inspiration for their Sicilian culinary experiences.
Their Journey started from a young age sharing time with their grandparents who taught them about their Italian heritage through their love of food and their homeland. Youngest sister Emilia who took her passion for food professionally went and trained as a Chef at the tender age of 16 where for 16 years she travelled and worked across Europe working in Michelin Starred restaurants, one stop she spent over 2 years in mainland Italy before making her way back home down to Sicily in 2014.
Emilia’s time in Sicily re-ignited her passion for her heritage, the ingredients, products and their history inspiring her to partner with the talented people behind them and bring their products and story over to the UK. Sourcing and using some of the most premium Sicilian ingredients imported directly by Strazzanti, Emilia has created Sicilian culinary experiences through Pop up residency’s, Supper Clubs, & The Sicilian Bakery and now The Sicilian Deli. www.strazzanti.co