Olive ‘s colour changes from green to violet, that is, the veraison; in order to obtain a product of the highest quality, which is the result of the milling of the olives during this period of ripening. The native olive variety is the Picual.
To better understand the process, let’s make a simile with orange juice.
Ingredients:
Oranges and olives
Utensils
Orange (basket , knife, juicer, glass)
Olives (Hopper , hammer mill, continuous system, tank)
Process:
Ripened and freshly picked fruit
We cut the fruit
We apply physical forces
We deposit in clean glasses
Let us value the natural juices thus obtained:
- a) Natural Orange Juice: The juice obtained is of the highest quality. It preserves all the nutrients of the orange and also organoleptically has a beautiful color, an intense smell reminiscent of the orange it comes from and a characteristic flavor of the variety used (It does not taste or smell the same if the orange is navel, mandarin…). Each of us will like one more than the other, without that meaning that it is of higher quality. We call this juice Extra Natural Orange Juice (highest quality)
- b) Natural Olive Juice: The juice obtained is of the highest quality. It preserves all the nutrients of the olive and also organoleptically it has a beautiful colour, an intense smell reminiscent of the olive it comes from and a flavour characteristic of the variety used (it does not taste or smell the same if the olive is Picual, Arbequina…). Each of us will like one more than the other, without that meaning that it is of higher quality. This juice is called Extra Virgin Olive Oil . We have changed the terms – natural juice – (which we all understand) for the term – virgin – taken from antiquity, when the olive tree was considered a mythological tree whose fruit was offered to the gods, and could only be touched by the hands of virgin women.
Don’t you think that when you see Extra Virgin Olive Oil on the labels , it is difficult to deduce, if there is no culture of olive oils , that it indicates natural olive juice of the highest quality?
I like to define Extra Virgin Olive Oil as a proper name with two surnames; let me explain:
Olive oil. Proper name. Indicates that it is an oil whose origin is the olive .
Virgin. First surname. Indicates natural juice .
Extra. Second surname. Indicates maximum quality.
