As every year around this time, the olive harvest begins to make one of the most precious Spanish gastronomic products, EVOO. A product yet to be discovered even in our own country.
Many times we ignore that the olive is a fruit, and it is an autumn fruit, like the orange. The fruit ripens in the summer sun until it reaches autumn when it gives us all its oil and splendor. It is the farmer's decision when to harvest, but it is now when harvesting of the best oils begins (in the northern hemisphere, in the southern hemisphere it is in spring). The harvest is earlier the further south, but basically everyone starts at the same time. There is a very short window to get the best out of delicious fatty olive juice, there are even years that this window, depending on the area, lasts only one week, as it happened 3 seasons ago.
All the quality producers that thank God there are already many in Spain, go against the clock to be able to pick the best olives and as long as there is no setback, such as the desired rain, which comes great to the olive tree but paralyzes the harvest.
It is important to bear in mind that not all varieties of olives ripen at the same time, some are earlier than others, and that without taking into account the quantity of olives; the smaller the quantity, the faster the ripening. We could say that harvesting the olive to produce extra virgin oil (EVOO) Superior quality is like being prepared at the finish line with your car and your team, ready for when the light goes green. If we are prepared we will leave on time and we will give everything to make the most of each lap. And as in races, you have to do your best, because until the next race we will not have another chance, knowing that we only have one race a year! Therefore, we cannot afford to fail.
This year the spring was spectacular in terms of rains, but the summer has been really hard for two reasons, the high temperatures and, above all, the lack of rain when the fruit is growing. The dry olive grove (without irrigation) is the one with the highest percentage in Spain (first world producer by a landslide, on average we produce half of the world's oil) and this shortage of water causes production to decline -it is estimated that about 30% less than expected-; but that will only be seen at the end of the campaign.
Does less olives mean higher quality? It does not have to, we will not know that until the campaign has progressed further and we can have more information. In oil there is no concept of vintages as in wine, but there is a more or less generic behavior that can define the quality of a campaign.
The oils I have tried so far in my area (Andalusia) I think they are very rich, some others have arrived a little late to the harvest and missed that quality window, which could indicate that this year we are ahead of time. In any case, it is exciting to see how one and the other producers are making that strenuous effort in order to obtain the best extra virgin oil possible from your farm, your area, your variety. Each year is different, each campaign has its challenges, each farm its moment and each olive its juice, this is the passion of working with the gift that olives give us, the extra virgin because I would call extra virgin olive oil, just extra virgin oil, there is no other that can be called the same.
Let us prepare ourselves for the pursuit of excellence, extra virgin oil perfect, the only oil that praises the kitchen and its recipes, the liquid gold that flows between the best ingredients. One more campaign, a new illusion for the best taste of the Mediterranean.
AUTHOR: Alfonso J Fernández, extra virgin taster and selector
"The biggest competitor of olive oil is ignorance"
