Olive Oil

Pondering the Pantry --- Olive Oil

Olive oil is basic on the shopping list, but there are numerous misunderstandings. When shopping the best quality is “extra virgin.” It must pass several tests --- acidity of not more than 0.8% and peroxides at less than 20 milli-equivalents per kilogram. So far, so good. Objective laboratory testing. Then comes the catch. Extra virgin olive oil must have an aroma or of taste of three types: bitter, peppery and fruity. That is a subjective determination made by a panel, and the determination is not absolute. There are grades of aroma and taste, thus dividing “extra virgin” into various qualities.

Obviously you cannot walk down a supermarket aisle tasting olive oils. In addition few of us are really expert to evaluate oils. One solution requires a little bit of homework. In June the annual TerraOliva competition is held in Jerusalem, and dozens of olive oil are evaluated. See  the web site. The results can be a good guide to purchases, but as usual there is a caveat. For those for whom it is a concern, not all olive oil is kosher. Why?

“Pure olive oil.” The term sounds innocent enough, both from a consumer point of view. However, read carefully. There is no indication of quality. Usually “pure olive oil” is extremely low grade that has been refined and rendered virtually tasteless. Then, a small amount of virgin oil is usually added to restore some taste. Refining is a hot process, thus indicating a need for kosher supervision.There is an old adage, “You get what you pay for.” Many supermarkets have sales on olive oil. Don’t be fooled by “Pure olive oil.” One known gimmick is to stretch olive oil by adding the liquid extracted from the dredging after production. Quality olive oil production is expensive. If the price is too low, start asking yourself why.

“Buyers beware.” That is another familiar adage. When buying in a supermarket you do have the (small) advantage of reading the label. In restaurants there is no label. “Salad with olive oil and vinegar.” That says nothing about the quality of the olive oil. One money saving trick is to adulterate the oil with lesser qualities.

Some terms are historic and used today to entice the buyer into making a purchase. “Cold press,” for example, is archaic. Once extra-virgin oil was extracted by hydraulic press, then hot water was poured on the remaining olive paste to produce an inferior oil. In the commercial world today that is a story for history books. Quality olive oil is always “cold pressed.” Now the accepted method of olive paste extraction (the lesser quality grade) is by centrifuge --- easier to operate and to clean machinery. In other words, virtually everything is “cold press.”

How should you proceed? A specialty store is probably your best bet. Supermarkets aim at price, not quality. Nor is their staff really equipped to answer questions. Obviously, there is the art of choosing.

Olive oil is not like wine. It degrades with time. One tip is to buy the oil as soon as it arrives from the mill. Make sure it is stored in a dark bottle and kept in the store away from sunlight. The color of the oil can vary by the species. “Bottled in Italy” or “Produced in Italy” do not mean Italian olives; just as it says, it means that the processing plant is in Italy.

Pay attention to “Best bought by…” but that is not an absolute guideline. In fact, it is really a non-descript phrase. Some companies store oil for long period of time, all oil from a recent crop, and label according to the latest date.

This writer is certainly an aficionado of good olive oil. It is a healthy part of a diet, but like any food it should be bought carefully.