Todo sobre el aceite de oliva
Why are there sediments at the bottom of the bottles? Is the Olive Oil spoiled?
Tips for frying with olive oil
Which are the advantages of frying with Olive Oil?
What is olive oil acidity? and what does it mean?
Which are the best ways to preserve and store extra virgin olive oil?
Does olive oil expire?
What is the difference between "first cold extracted" olive oil and "first cold pressed" olive oil?
What is cold extracted olive oil?
What are Single Varietals Extra Virgin Olive Oils?
Can olive oil be used in baking?
Which is the difference between filtered and unfiltered olive oil? Filtered Vs Unfiltered Olive Oil
What is the difference between Virgin Olive Oil and Extra Virgin Olive Oil?
Extra Virgin Olive Oil with mild flavour
Bitter olive oils
Where to buy Extra Virgin Olive Oil?
El aceite de oliva es zumo oleoso que se obtiene de las aceitunas. A diferencia de otros aceite vegetales, el aceite de oliva se puede obtener directamente del fruto por medios mecánicos, sin usar disolventes químicos. A estos aceites de oliva se les llama aceites de oliva vírgenes.
El principal uso del aceite aceite es la alimentación. El aceite de oliva se ha usado como alimento que aporta grasas a la dieta. Se usa principalmente para realizar frituras, aliños y tomar en crudo.
Actualmente el aceite de oliva es considerado una de las grasas más recomendadas por sus beneficios para la salud.
(Ver más usos del aceite de oliva)
El aceite de oliva es un producto muy agradecido en la cocina. Sus usos son muy variados, y en la cocina mediterránea es difícil encontrar un plato en el que no esté como ingrediente. Os damos algunos consejos para algunos usos:
Los aceites de oliva vírgenes se producen en molinos de aceite o en almazaras. En ellos, se machacan las aceitunas y de la pasta resultante se extrae el aceite por centrifugación en la mayoría de los casos. (Para conocer más sobre el proceso)
La pasta de aceituna a la que se ha extraído el aceite por centrifugación se llama orujo y aún contiene una pequeña porción de aceite. El proceso industrial para extraerlo se realiza en orujeras. (Saber más sobre el aceite de oliva de orujo)
En otras ocasiones el aceite de oliva virgen obtenido en los molinos es de tan baja calidad que no es apto para el consumo humano. En estos casos, es necesario refinarlo. Este proceso se realiza en las refinerías.
Los aceites de oliva se clasifican en función de su forma de obtención y de varios parámetros de calidad, tales como la acidez y los peróxidos.
Puede consultar los tipos de aceites de oliva conforme a la reglamentación de la Unión Europea en el siguiente enlace. (Tipos y calidades de aceites de oliva)
El aceite de oliva de mayor calidad es el aceite de oliva virgen extra.
El aceite de oliva es un alimento en el que no proliferan microorganismo y no presenta, por tanto un gran riesgo para nuestra salud. De hecho el aceite de oliva es usado para la elaboración de conservas. No obstante, va perdiendo propiedades con el paso del tiempo.
Puede saber más sobre:
Los olivos tienen una única cosecha al año. En el hemisferio Norte la cosecha empieza en noviembre, y en el hemisferio Sur, en mayo.
Para obtener aceites de oliva más verdes y frutados se suele realizar una cosecha temprana justo en el envero de la aceituna, es decir cuando cambia de color de verde a morada.
El aceite de oliva se produce principalmente en los países de la cuenca mediterránea: España, Italia, Grecia, Turquía, Portugal, Túnez y Marruecos.
El olivo se cultiva bien en zonas de clima mediterráneo. Así pues, hay plantaciones de olivos fuera de Mediterráneo en California, Chile, Argentina, Sudáfrica y Australia.
El principal productor mundial de aceite de oliva es España. La producción española se concentra en el Sur, en Andalucía, siendo las provincias de Jaén y Córdoba las mayores productoras.
El aceite de oliva está compuesto en un 98% de grasas. La mayor parte de estas grasas son grasas monoinsaturadas (ácido oleico).
Puedes ver las características de las grasas del aceite de oliva en comparación con las de otros aceites vegetales.
En el 2% restante se encuentran sustancias muy interesantes desde el punto de vista nutricional. Tales son los polifenoles, compuestos antioxidantes y antiinflamatorios, entre los que destaca el oleocanthal.
Read more
Las Valdesas olive oils are unfiltered, so they contain small suspended solid remains from the fruit of the olive.
After a period of time,moths, these solids will settle down in a natural way to be deposited in the bottom of the packaging.
These sediments are completely normal in unfiltered Extra Virgin Olive Oils and they are not indicative, in any case, that the olive oils are damaged. If you do not want to have these remains in your product, simply filter them with a strainer.
In exceptional situations in which bottled olive oil is very fresh (just milled), i.e. just freshly produced, they may appear such as gum remains with rubbery appearance in the bottom of the packagings. These are unions of waxes, gums and phospholipids present naturally in olive oil. Like the described solids in suspension, they are not indicative of a bad quality or irregular conservation of the olive oils, and they can be filtered and removed easily also with a strainer.
A completely different phenomenon to the described above, and extended to all the extra virgin olive oils, filtered and unfiltered, is what happens with the olive oils in cold weather conditions. At low temperatures, between 23 and 5.5 ºC, the fatty acids of the olive oils begin to solidify, adopting a whitish color and waxy appearance. This same phenomenon can be seen in cans that contain olive oil when they are in the refrigerator. Some customers of northern Europe have got in touch with us to explain if it was normal or not. (They tell us there is white stuff in olive oil)
Obviously these 'sediments' are not such, and they do not have any effect on the quality of the olive oil. They disappear simply when the temperature raises.
Read moreFrying is the procedure of cooking the food introducing them in hot olive oil. The temperature should be a little higher than the boiling point of water, between 130 and 190 °C.
The goal is that when you enter the food into the hot oil, a crust around it will be formed that prevents the oil penetrates the food and this is cooked with its own water content. The result should be a food golden and crunchy on the outside and cooked on the inside, without being soaked in oil.
Olive oil should not exceed 200 °C, because at this temperature begin to break down the fatty acids. In other words, the oil begins to smoke and burn out.
The temperature of the olive oil must be steady during frying. It must be ensured that the temperature does not go down too much when entering the food. It is therefore recommendable that the food is at room temperature, introducing it into the Olive Oil slowly.
The frying temperature depends on the water content in the food and the size of the pieces. At higher water content, more time should be frying and at a lower temperature, in order to have enough time to cook the inside without burning the surface. For example the chips require much time due to its high water content, and it is recommended that you fry them at 130-150ºC. The “fried fish” or the croquettes need less time and can be fried to 180ºC.
It is important to introduce the food as dry as possible, because the water favors the decomposition and oxidation of the oil; in addition to avoid splashing. In this sense it is important that the olive oil is hot when entering the food so that the water of them evaporate quickly. It is also important to fry foods without covering the frying pan so that the water vapor does not go back to the Olive Oil.
After using the oil for frying, it is convenient to filter it. The particles that remain in the Olive Oil facilitate its decomposition.
You must not mix oils with new oils. Arrange an Olive Oil for fried fish and other for general use.
Following the above tips of conservation, you can use 4 or 5 cycles of frying with olive oil, according to the International Olive Oil Council.
You can detect that the olive oil is burned when you notice a dark color on it, irregular and not agreeable smell and appear foams. However, even when you do not have these features, you should not exceed the cycles of frying previously recommended.
The electric fryer has the great advantage that it is very comfortable to use, having a thermostat to regulate the temperature of frying. But under our point of view it is its sole advantage.
In the frying pan you can use the amount of oil in terms of what is to be fried, and although does not have thermostat, make fritters are healthier.
The great problem of the electric fryers is that they need a large quantity of olive oil. In general, they usually have more than two or three liters of capacity. If we want to make some fried foods healthy, we need to use plenty of oil to make 4 or 5 uses. This is why we believe that its use is less economic that the frying pan. Moreover we must clean the electric fryer with each oil change.
Remember the greasy smell of some establishments with large electric fryers that use sunflower oil, which supposedly should be used only for 1 or 2 cycles of frying, because the sunflower oil degrades before the olive oil. We think it is very unlikely that they do so, as it would be completely unprofitable.
Read moreOlive oil is the most stable vegetable oil in the range of temperatures commonly used for frying.
That is due to two reasons. The first one is due to its high concentration of oleic acid, monounsaturated fatty acid, which is more stable at high temperatures that the polyunsaturated fatty acids, which predominate in the composition of the oils of seeds (e.g. sunflower). The second is due to the presence of polyphenols, which are natural antioxidants in olive oil that prevent, during a time, the Olive Oil degradation.
Its stability allows frying up to 180 ºC, which causes the rapid formation of the crust that keeps the inside of the food free of oil, which leads to lower caloric contribution to the food, light and appetizing food frying, and a lower cost of oil.
This same stability also allows, if olive oil is correctly used during frying, that it can be reused several times more compared to the seed oils, which ensures you significant savings.
Finally, the olive oil, because of their high coefficient of expansion, 'grows' in the frying pan as it heats up, with what can fry more food with less oil. On the contrary, some compounds in seed oils (e.g. sunflower) evaporate during frying, decreasing the amount of oil available.
Among all the varieties of olive oil, Picual olive oil is ideal for frying because it is the olive oil that contains the highest amount of oleic acid and polyphenols, the natural antioxidants that prevent the oxidation of the oil.
Some people believe that frying with Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) is a waste due to its higher price in relation to other sort of oils commonly used for frying.
In our opinion, and apart from the benefits mentioned above for the simple 'olive oil' with regard to the seed oils, we think that there are a couple of additional advantages.
Firstly, the extra virgin olive oil adds more flavor to your food during frying, this way you can reduce the amount of salt and sauces to add to the product already fried.
Secondly, the extra virgin olive oil contains, on average, five times more polyphenols than a simple 'olive oil', so that the stability of the extra virgin during the frying is greater.
Read moreThe acidity of olive oil is a subject as widespread as misinterpreted by consumers and even by cookers. We will try to clarify some doubts.
Index
The oil is naturally generated within the olive fruit forming triglycerides. Each triglyceride is a package made up of three fatty acids linked by a molecule called glycerol.
The link between glycerol with the three fatty acids is weak, so before any aggressive or oxidizing atmosphere, it breaks and set free the three fatty acids, and consequently the olive oil starts degrading. Acidity measures how much of these free fatty acids are in the olive oil; therefore acidity is a general indicator of the quality of virgin olive oils.
Acidity, the parameter written at the labels of the bottles, measures the amount of free fatty oleic acid, the most abundant in the olive oils. Acidity is the rate in weight of the free oleic acid over the total amount of olive oil. In the labels it should be written in percent (%), but for some reason that we do not know this rate has always been expressed as degrees (°).
Among consumers there exist a certain confusion about the acidity of the olive oil. Almost everybody tend to confuse it with the intensity of the flavor of the oil, independently whether these flavors are pleasant or unpleasant. In fact, the fatty acids have no taste. We think that the confusion is due to two reasons:
1.- Because they confuse acidity with one of the basic tastes: sweet, salty, acid (sour) and bitter. In reality, they are not related, and acidity, as a parameter of quality, cannot be detected by tasting.
2.- Because, although considering acidity a parameter of quality only applicable to Virgin Olive Oils, the industry has used it in the past on the labels of the 'olive oils', which are mixtures of refined Olive Oils with Virgin ones. So, the more refined oil has an Olive Oil, the less acidity and taste, since refined olive oils don´t have neither flavor nor acidity.
The acidity level is one of the main parameters to classify the quality of the different types in virgin olive oils:
Extra virgin olive oil: Its acidity level must be less than or equal to 0,8º.
Virgin olive oil: Its acidity should be less than or equal to 2º.
All virgin oils with acidity levels over 2º are classified as lampantes.
At the end of the harvest every year, we perform the acidity analysis to our olive oils.
Arbequina, Picual and Hojiblanca olive oils are usually below 0.20 degrees of acidity. (The lowest acidity we have ever got is 0.14º).
Frantoio and Manzanillo olive oils are usually between 0.4 and 0.6º . All of them below the Extra Virgin limit of 0.8 degrees.
You can see the acidity of our olive oils on the analytical page.
Some time ago in the olive oil packagings, not in Virgin olive oil, the levels in acidity of the olive oil appeared as the main claim of their quality.
Since acidity caused confusion in consumers and did not necessarily responded to a quality criterion in olive oils, the legislation changed and currently, and if the producer wish to include the acidity of their olive oils, he must also include other quality values such as the index of peroxides, waxes, and ultraviolet absorbances (K270, K232 and ΔK).
That did not lead the producers to include these additional quality parameters, but rather to eliminate the acidity of the labels and replace them with generic numbers at the beginning, 0.4 and 1, and later by the "intense" and "soft" ratings.
Only in high quality extra virgin olive oils the producers print in their labels the acidity level and other values like peroxides, waxes and the absorbances K.
As we have seen, acidity of an Olive Oil increases as it is exposed to oxidants and aggressive environments. We are going to see how triglycerides, which are the main compound of olive oil, can be broken down along the life of the olive oil.
1.- The Olive Oil inside the olive fruit.
Al first, triglycerides are protected inside the olive fruit against the oxygen in the atmosphere by the skin of the fruit. If the skin is broken, the oxygen gets into the fruit and starts to break down triglycerides and acidity rises. The skin can break down for many reasons: by the bite of pests, by hailstorms, by falling to the ground, because it is crushed in the transportation, etc. In conclusion, the olive oils from healthy olives, without having being bitted and nearly harvested from the tree will have a low acidity.
Another delicate step is the storage of the olives before its grinding. When the olives arrive at the mill are discharged into metallic deposits. There the olives laid in the bottom part are crushed by the weight of the above, with what the oxygen starts to attack. If the olives are deposited a lot of time in these metallic deposits before grinding, the acidity rises significantly and may even start the fermentation process. This problem is increased by the maturity of the olive, as it is much softer and more easily to be crushed.
2. The grinding and production process.
In the mill and when the olives are under the production process, the resulting pulp is in contact with the air and therefore it is exposed to oxidation. The longer the milling process, the more will be oxidized the pulp of the olive fruit. In this case the temperature is important. The higher the temperature, the faster the oxidation reactions, and consequently, acidity will rise. (More over olive oil production).
3.- Storage and conservation in the Olive Oil cellar.
Once produced the olive oil and stored in the cellar, the product could continue its oxidation. In case that the deposits are not watertight, or even being watertight, if the tank is not completely full of Olive Oil, there will be air inside the tank. Some mills removed this air filling it with nitrogen to keep the Olive Oil perfectly.
Read more
Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a fruit juice. Its flavor and properties decrease over the time. It is a process in which the product looses its properties, or more technically oxidizes.
In the absence of oxygen the olive oil is perfectly conserved and has traditionally been used as a preservative of tinned meat and fish. In contact with air, the olive oil develop rancid flavors, but, in general, it is usually harmless to health, it is simply not agreeable to tasting. That is the reason why olive oils indicates in its label a 'best before' date instead of 'expiration date'.
Another consequence of rancidity is that the polyphenols, antioxidants components in the Extra Virgin Olive Oil goes declining, with what the beneficial properties for the health of these substances also decrease.
The rancidity is an oxidative process, and therefore it needs oxygen. Light and a high temperature are the other main enemies of the Olive Oils due to they accelerates the oxidation process.
Tips:
- Keep the olive oil in a dark place, in a pantry, or inside the cardboard boxes of PET bottles.
- Open the bottle and after using, close the cap.
- Keep the olive oil in a cool place.
- Keep the oil protected from strong odors. Olive oil has a great easily to trap other flavors. That is why it is great to prepare sauces and stir-fries; but also in its storage it can takes undesirable flavors.
- For regular use in crude and salads, use small oilcans. This way it will not give time to becomes rancid, and go by filling the oilcan from the bottle according to your needs.
- To preserve better the olive oil already used for frying, you can follow these tips.
Olive oil is a totally natural product that does not expire in any of its varieties or types. It has preferential consumption date, which is something very different as we will go to explain below.
Olive oil producers are obliged to fix in the labelling, and in accordance with Spanish Legislation, (R. D 1334/1999 approving the general standard of labelling, packaging and publicity of foodstuffs, and which indicates in his article 11 that "in any product, the minimum date for consumption or its expiration date" must be included), the date of preferential consumption, which is between 12 and 24 months depending on several factors.
It is essential to clarify that its consumption after that date does not produce any harmful effects for the health, since we talk about preferential consumption and not of expiration date, so, expiration date and preferential consumption date are very different concepts and not always well interpreted.
Although the media are putting special emphasis on this issue and our society is increasingly aware about the quality, origin and production of the products we consume daily, we do not always pay the necessary attention,and it can lead to a clear risk for our health.
It means that from the date written on the label of the product, it is no longer suitable for consumption and must be disposed of. Not doing so can involve health problems. The product may be consumed until the same day as it appears on the label or container, but not from it. In addition to the expiration date, producers must explain a basic description of the appropriate conditions of conservation. As mentioned above, olive oils do not expire.
The preferential consumption date is that on which the producer guarantees that the product preserve its qualities and properties, provided it is maintained according to the appropriate conditions of conservation, both in the store and in the home. The main difference with the expiration date is that the product can be consumed once the preferential consumption date has been reached, without implying any health risk, although its quality may decrease.
In olive oils, the preferential consumption date tends to be between a year and a half and two years, although its durability will depend on several factors such as transport, adequate conservation in both store and home, type of container, type of oil varieties... (Click for Olive oil conservation).
The durability of a food product cannot be mathematical. For their better conservation, we must not only consider the method or process of production, but also each and every one of the factors mentioned above.
They are the production or packing companies who, following strict sanitary and quality criteria, are responsible for setting the dates of preferential consumption of food products in general and olive oils in particular, their conservation will be the recommended one in the labelling of the packagings, so the oils must be kept in a cool place between 18 and 20 º, dry, away from the light and protected from intense smells. A suitable date is set for consumption with safety margins, always advising the customer to consume it before the indicated period of time, this way he can taste and enjoy all the flavors, nuances and aromas of the product. The expiration date on the product does not mean that it is no longer suitable for consumption.
Not all olive oils have the same life span. The producer must bear in mind that the durability of an olive oil will also depend on other factors than its adequate conservation as explained in the above paragraph. These factors are:
• Harvest: As the olive oil is a totally natural product, a juice of olives that does not contain preservatives or stabilizers, the best freshness of the product and its durability is conditioned to that it belongs to the harvest or campaign in source. Although legally it is not obligatory to indicate in the labels the campaign to which they belong, in Las Valdesas we mention it expressly, so that the customer knows that he is consuming a fresh olive oil and totally guaranteed.
• Oil type: Extra virgin olive oil has a higher stability given its high antioxidant content, so it will be kept in better condition until it reaches the preferential consumption date that other olive oils such as olive pomace oil , olive oil or virgin olive oil.
• Oil variety: There are varieties within the extra virgin olive oils, which are preserved better than others. For example, picual, due to its high content in antioxidants, oleic acid and polyphenols, it keepts its aromas and flavors for longer than other more unstable ones such as Arbequina. This does not mean that a variety of olive oil could be better than other, but we must take into account its consuming peculiarities following the recommended periods.
• Type of packaging: Any container marketed today that complies with the regulations for the packaging of olive oils is perfectly suitable. However, depending on the period of consumation, some could be better than others. If you want to keep the olive oil for a long period and in better conditions, we recommend it in tin, cans or dark glass bottles. If on the contrary, you will consume it soon and you want to buy it in a cheaper price, we recommend pet bottles, taking the precaution to preserve them properly, not exposing them to high temperatures and protecting from the light both natural and artificial.
Read moreEvery day we receive calls from friends asking us about cold pressed oils, more specifically about “first cold pressed oils”. Today, this expression is no longer entirely valid. We'll try to clarify below.
At present, oils obtained by pressing are rarely marketed, not only for reasons of profitability, but also for hygienic-sanitary and food safety reasons.
Interestingly, the idea has spread that "pressed oil" is a high-quality olive oil when in fact this process has been replaced by other more advanced and technical ones that provide higher quality and better features to the product.
Below we will try to explain the difference between cold "pressed" olive oils, and those that the general public really refers to when they ask about them, cold "extracted" olive oils.
Traditionally, olive oils were obtained using presses, which were made up of a concentric axis, around which, and inserted on that axis, batches of capachos were placed (pressing mats originally made from esparto grass and later from other synthetic fibers). On these mats, the olive paste was deposited after being crushed and ground.
Finally, this stack of mats was closed with a metal plate on which the pressure was exerted directly. By exerting this pressure, the olive paste let the liquid, a mixture of oil and vegetation water, escape.
If the oil was made without heating the olive paste, it was called "cold pressed" (the paste cannot exceed 27 ºC).
When olive pastes are heated it is because the heat favors the extraction of the oil by reducing its viscosity, but by doing so, the oil loses aroma and flavor, since the volatile compounds responsible for these evaporate.
This blend was then taken to tanks to decant naturally, in such a way that the oil remained on the surface, and the water below, and thus the supernatant oil could be collected. This traditional method has several drawbacks when obtaining a quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil:
This production procedure has been discontinued for economic reasons and for reasons of quality and hygiene as mentioned above. The modernization of mills and the use of centrifuges have provided higher quality oils with better properties than those obtained through pressing.
The olive oil obtained using the procedure described in the previous paragraph is what we call first cold-pressed oil. It is extracted with the pulp of the olive freshly cold-ground, without having been pressed previously and with the tools and implements completely clean or renewed (press and mats). The pulp of the olive is only pressed once, the remaining paste is either discarded or pressed again. In the latter case, it would no longer be called first-pressed.
Obviously, in the second or third pressing, the oil obtained is of much lower quality, because during the time that passes until the second pressing is carried out, the pulp oxidizes, the vegetation water starts fermenting and, being in contact with the oil, transmits undesirable smells and flavors (alpechín or alpechinera).
It is the widespread and already traditional method in the production of olive oil, where centrifuges are used to extract the olive oil. If the oil is extracted at a temperature below 27 ºC, it is called cold-extracted olive oil, which guarantees the highest quality from a gastronomic and organoleptic point of view, preserving all its properties and health benefits.
To obtain more oil (greater yield) from the olive, there are companies that proceed to increase the temperature to levels higher than those indicated in the previous paragraph, thus obtaining a greater amount of oil per kg of olives and a greater volume of oil to be marketed, but this oil undoubtedly loses its nutritional and organoleptic properties.
All our varieties of Extra Virgin Olive Oil are made by first cold extraction, following the manuals and quality standards, the previously ground olive pulp is passed through the centrifuge only once, the leftover olive paste is processed after extraction so we can reuse it, through composting, as a fertilizer in our olive groves.
With this, we guarantee that you will enjoy the experience of tasting the product with the highest qualities in both aromas and flavours. You can check the opinions of our customers here.
Read more
Cold extracted olive oil is the one being extractacted at a temperature lower than 27 °C (80 ºF).
In the production of Extra Virgin Olive Oils, once crushed olives in the mill, the resulting paste is always heated during kneading, due to it favors the union of the small drops of olive oil of the paste, increasing the efficiency of the extraction.
Nevertheless, temperature has a high incidence on the final quality of the olive oil from the culinary and organoleptic point of view.
Responsible for the scents and smells of olive oil substances are volatile ones, it means that they tend to evaporate easily. Therefore, the hotter is the temperature of production, the more volatile substances escape from the olive oil and, as a consequence, the olive oil loses intensity in aromas and flavors, and its culinary characteristics are less.
The before mentioned information is relevant in high level extra virgin olive oils, which are often used in crude.
On the other hand, low temperatures reduce the rate of oxidation of the paste, so, in equal conditions, the cold extraction olive oils will have less acidity.
As a curiosity, this process, taken to an extrem, is one of the steps for refining pomace olive oils, where the olive oils are warmed up over 150º C. In this occasion it is not to increase the production but to eliminate all the flavors and disagreeable smells of the pomace olive oils.
There is much confusion about the concept of the cold extraction. In some forums we have read that the Extra Virgin Olive Oil is only the cold pressed produced, or that which contains the greatest amount of polyphenols and antioxidants and anti-inflammatory substances. This is not true. There are Extra Virgin Olive Oils that without having been produced under cold conditions have all the requirements to be Extra Virgin. If they fulfill the level of acidity and the organoleptic conditions in the tasting, they will be Extra Virgin Olive Oils.
Read moreSingle Varietal Extra Virgin Olive Oils are those produced only with a specific variety of olives.
Most of the olive oil produced in Spain is elaborated by cooperatives. Cooperatives are groups of farmers in a town or county, who agree to construct a mill for grinding their olives and then sell the oil with the cooperative brand.
Commonly, olive farmers have different varieties of olive trees. For years, and even nowadays, farmers after a harvesting day carry their olives fruits to the mill, where those also harvested by other farmers are mixed and milled together. The result is an olive oil composed by several varieties.
In the last years, with the construction of mills in private farms, where olives are controlled and separated by varieties, monovarietal extra virgin olive oils are being produced, and consumers are learning to identify the characteristics of each one. Therefore, many cooperatives have changed their procedures, organizing to the farmers to identify the varieties, mill them separately and produce single varietal olive oils.
The following tendency is the realization of coupage or assemblies of single varietal olive oils, which are mixtures duly controlled in different percentages to obtain new aromas and flavors, trying to improve the characteristics of a healthy variety with the addition of a certain percentage of another, for example, with more quantity of antioxidants.
Actually the variety does not affect the quality of the olive oil. You can produce varietal olive oils that can be extra virgin or lower qualities olive oils, according to the way in which the olive is milled.
Another subject are the tastes, it is possible to produce extra virgin olive oils (EVOO) of different varieties. Some consumers prefer the oils a bit bitter, typical in the mixture of different varieties of olives, while others do not like it at all. The fruity notes are different among varieties, which are only distinguishable in extra virgin olive oils. Some varieties have notes of tomato, other of almond, artichoke, bananas, etc.
Read moreIn confectionery the main ingredients are some kind of fat and sugar.
The traditionally used fats have been lard, butter, and more recently margarine. The first two are of animal origin, so they contain many saturated fats; and margarine is of plant origin, but has been processed, so it is generally made up of trans fats, which are quite infamous for their unhealthy effects.
In conclusion, none of the traditional fats in confectionery are especially beneficial for the health.
However, either because consumption habits have become healthier, or because the general quality of olive oils has improved a lot in recent years, the fact is that the use of olive oil in confectionery has been progressively increasing.
We'll give you some tips so you can start successfully substituting butter with olive oil:
Some producers of extra virgin olive oil produce unfiltered olive oils. We will try to explain the differences with filtered ones, and why we produce unfiltered olive oils.
The difference between filtered and unfiltered olive oil is that unfiltered one contains some solids in suspension and small amounts of water from the olive fruit.
From an organoleptic point of view, we have heard many and different opinions: from that unfiltered olive oil is more flavour intense, that in filtered olive oils aromas can be detected much better. These are some of the opinions given by recognized experts in our sector of activity.
Our point of view, after some tasting, is that the differences of aromas and flavors, after filtering properly, are not significant. You can form your own opinion by filtering an unfiltered olive oil at home. Just use a coffee filter. You will see that the olive oil produced is quite more translucent. Obviously, industrial filters are different but this homemade experiment is a good approximation.
One of the advantages of unfiltered oil with a turbid appearance is that the consumer has the security that the olive oil is fresh and that has been produced in the last season, from olives harvested in the last year. That is because unfiltered olive oils decant naturally in tanks as it is explained here. This process takes between 4 and 10 months (there is not an exact period of time, because it depends on the temperature and the variety), and after decantation, unfiltered olive oils have the same appearance that filtered ones.
Another interesting feature of unfiltered olive oils is that preserves additional polyphenols in the small amounts of water that were not removed. Polyphenols are components of great antioxidant activity and therefore very desirable to be included in the diet.
In the olive there are two types of polyphenols: non polar polyphenols that are dissolved in the fatty acids, and polar polyphenols, which are found in the vegetable water. During the olive oil production process, non-polar polyphenols are retained in the olive oil and the polar ones are removed with the water. So, the unfiltered olive oils, with small parts of water, contain both, polar and non polar polyphenols.
Not everything was going to be favorable in the unfiltered olive oil. Apart from the disadvantage of their less attractive appearance compared to those olive oils that have been filtered, another disadvantage is their conservation, therefore it is recommended to be consumed in the same year, because the unfiltered olive oils decant into the packaging. After a period of time these solid remains could transmit any undesirable aroma to the olive oil, although, neither the olive oil never has been damaged for its consumption nor harmful to your health. Therefore it is recommended to be consumed as fresh as possible and not do it after more than 12 months from its packaging.
In Las Valdesas we elaborate filtered and unfiltered olive oils, but they are not usually available all year round.
During the oil production campaign, between October and December approximately, we have all unfiltered oils available, but it is possible that we still do not have them available filtered.
Between January and May, most likely we have both filtered and unfiltered oils available, depending on the variety.
During the summer and September months, we will have mainly filtered oils.
You can check on any page of our packaging, which varieties are available filtered and unfiltered. (for example, the 2.5-liter can)
If you are interested in any variety that does not have the type you want (filtered or unfiltered), you can leave us your email and we will notify you when it is available.
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It is known to all that olive oil is one of the pillars of the Mediterranean diet, recognized by nutritionists worldwide, but where does our knowledge about this emblematic product come from? When we stand in front of a supermarket counter and see Virgin Olive Oil and Extra Virgin Olive Oil, do we know how one differs from the other? We will try to clarify this below.
Both are pure olive juice extracted by mechanical procedures, usually using centrifugation, since the traditional pressing is practically obsolete. In no case are they subjected to refining. The juice obtained directly from the olive by the aforementioned process is called Virgin Olive Oil, which, depending on its quality, would finally be classified as “Virgin Olive Oil” or “Extra Virgin Olive Oil”.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil is, among the Virgin Olive Oils, the one of highest quality. Its acidity level must not exceed 0.8, while Virgin Olive Oil has acidity levels higher than Extra Virgin, but should still be less than or equal to 2. This chemical criterion is the first that differentiate these types of olive oil.
The second differentiating criterion is purely organoleptic. Through tasting, where flavours and aromas are analyzed, an attempt is made to detect possible defects. The Extra Virgin Olive Oil has no defect, the result obtained through the tasting panel must be zero and its median of the fruity attribute must be greater than zero. On the contrary, in Virgin Olive Oil, the median of the defects appreciated in tasting (panel test) should be less than or equal to 2.5, and the median of the fruity attribute greater than zero. As such, we see how while Extra Virgin Olive Oil is perfect with no defects, Virgin Olive Oil are allowed some.
In summary:
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Where chemical acidity levels are less than 0.8 and there are no organoleptic defects whatsoever. The oil must meet both parameters to be classified as Extra Virgin. It is undoubtedly the best oil because its nutritional properties remain intact.
Virgin Olive Oil: Where chemical acidity levels must be less than or equal to 2, and the result of the median of the defects in the tasting panel less than or equal to 2.5. The moment any of these parameters is met, it is classified as Virgin.
Aside from the technical criteria, we could ask:
To answer that question, we have to go back to the origin:
Any irregularity, malpractice or oversight in any of the processes discussed will mark the difference between a truly perfect Extra Virgin Olive Oil and a Virgin Olive Oil.
The effort and dedication in the daily care of the olive groves on the farm, the strict supervision and the application of the highest quality standards in the production of the product in the mill, and finally, the use of the appropriate techniques and technology for the conservation of the oil in the cellars once produced, will give us the result of the real Extra Virgin Olive Oil, a perfect product for you to enjoy at the table that will provide you with countless health benefits.
At Las Valdesas we offer Extra Virgin Olive Oils of exceptional quality at an unbeatable price. Would you like to try? To access our online shop click here.
Read moreSometimes and after receiving phone calls from customers, they often ask us that they wish to buy a mild extra virgin olive oil. In most cases, they want an extra virgin olive oil neither bitter nor pungent taste or simply without any pungent notes (some comment that "do not grip the throat").
With the above characteristics it is the commercial category mild olive oil, (the old 0.4 º) which is a mixture of refined olive oil, without any flavor and a percentage (10% aprox.) of Virgin or Extra virgin olive oils to give a slight touch of flavor. But it is not extra virgin olive oil, it is a mixture, so the healthy benefits of the extra virgin olive oil are diluted.
The solution below.
There are some varieties of olives that naturally produce a mild flavor extra virgin olive oil. Varieties like arbequina, picudo and royal, for example, are some of them that give a very mild olive oil, friendly to the palate and without any bitter notes.
Both the royal, from the area of Cazorla (Jaén) and picudo, from Córdoba, are olive oils with a very limited production, can be difficult to find them, and so, very expensive. However, arbequina is much more widespread and usually has a more affordable price.
Although they are soft tasted varieties, it is not advisable to consume them at the beginning of the campaign or very green because they will not be as sweet as you could expect. It is also recommended them to be filtered.
We recommend the use of extra-soft virgin olive oils for children in breakfasts and snacks. We also recommend it for confectionery, as a substitute for butter, and for the elaboration of mayonnaises, replacing sunflower oil, but not everyone likes the result.
In Las Valdesas we produce arbequina extra virgin olive among other varieties, which has a mild flavor. You can see our packagings and prices in our online shop.
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The bitterness of olive oils is a fairly controversial topic in the world of olive oil, among producers, tasters and consumers alike.
According to the tasters, bitterness is a positive attribute of Extra Virgin Olive Oils, as long as it is balanced with the rest of the positive attributes, such as fruity notes and pungency.
Opinions among consumers are mixed, there are some who love bitter Extra Virgin Olive Oils, and others who in no way appreciate them.
Most varieties of olives produce bitter oils to a greater or lesser extent.
Those responsible for giving olive oil a bitter taste are natural compounds called polyphenols. Among them, oleuropein stands out as one of the most abundant polyphenols in olive oil and what brings the bitter taste.
Thus, the more oleuropein an oil has, the more bitter it will be.
At the same time, oleuropein is a powerful antioxidant, which makes bitter oils more stable at high temperatures and over time. In the same way, bitter oils, having a higher concentration of polyphenols, are healthier (see health benefits of olive oil).
Since the bitterness of an Extra Virgin Olive Oil depends on the amount of oleuropein, the olive oils with the most oleuropein will be the most bitter.
The amount of this compound in the oil depends on several factors:
The Spanish varieties of oils with greater intensity in their bitterness due to their high concentration of polyphenols and antioxidants are picual, cornicabra and manzanilla sevillana.
Picual: Variety originating from Jaén, cultivated in that area and in other provinces such as Granada, Córdoba and Ciudad Real.
Cornicabra: Variety originating from Toledo, cultivated in that area along with the areas of Ciudad Real, Cáceres, Madrid and Badajoz.
Manzanilla sevillana: Variety originating from Seville. Mainly used as table olives, although it is also ground for oil.
At Las Valdesas we make picual and manzanilla olive oils. They are available in our online store.
If you want to try them with all their intensity, we recommend that you try them freshly made. You can leave us your email a little further down in "Notice about new crop oils".
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Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) is a wide consumption food product that can be easily purchased in stores and shops, at least in Spain.
Below we are going to show you some differences depending on the sort of shop where you can buy it.
Most of the extra virgin olive oil is bought in these sort of establishments. From our point of view it is not the best place to buy it due to some reasons:
First, almost all large malls tend to use olive oil and milk as claim products, because they know that the lack of these two commodities in the supply forces families to make a purchase.
Thus, they advertise big discounts in these basic products so that families make the weekly or monthly purchase in their supermarkets. This way they compensate that discounts in olive oil and milk with the rest of the products.
For this they tend to put pressure on olive oil and milk producers as much as possible. In turn, the olive oil producer or commission agent, in front of the small margin offered by the supermarket, produce a limited quality extra virgin olive oil, simply to comply with the legislation and succeed economically. (See the features that an extra virgin olive oil must meet).
Secondly, large malls do not usually take care of the olive oils preservation. A PET transparent bottle can be many weeks in the aisles of a hypermarket under the light of the fluorescent tubes, which damage seriously the olive oil.
These two circumstances are, in our opinion, the causes of the OCU (consumer organization) report results, that figure out that many of the olive oils labelled as extra virgin are not.
These are usually a good option to taste high and different Extra Virgin Olive Oils, varieties and origin denominations. In Spain there are many companies that try to produce high quality EVOO.
Some of them have only small format bottles so, if you are looking for an extra virgin olive oil to be used in the kitchen for everything daily, that may not meet this need.
As disadvantage, prices tend to be high.
It is about to buy directly the extra virgin olive oil in cooperatives or mills where the olive oil is produced. The normal thing is to buy olive oil in five or two litre formats. The quality of these EVOO tends to be higher than that offered in hypermarkets or supermarkets.
Of course, in this case, prices tend to be higher than malls or hypermarket ones, whether they are on offer or not, something that annoys to customers not used to buying in cooperatives, who do not understand that buying in cooperatives can be more expensive.
The easiness of purchasing in cooperatives is confined to the production areas where they are just located.
Recently many small and medium size mills have been constructed in many private olive farms. The main intention of their owners is to get high quality extra virgin olive oils packaging and selling them like premium products in high prices. So most of the most awarded extra virgin olive oils are usually associated with a particular farm.
However, many of these mills have not still developed their own sales networks, marketing, or simply their activity is focused on producing extra virgin olive oils to sell later to other wellknown producers who use these olive oil to improve their own ones.
Here we understand that the customer could get a high quality extra virgin olive oil at a reasonable price.
The problem for consumers is how and where to find these mills. Intenet and new tecnologies are playing an important role in this matter.
They are the Oleotecas and speciality stores that sell olive oil by using the online tools and internet. They are very comfortable for buying different origin and varieties extra virgin olive oils. Their prices are usually cheaper than traditional shops and most of them usually sell extra virgin olive oils in family packagins.
Many producers and cooperatives sell their own extra virgin oils throught Internet. From our point of view, unless you live near a mill, it is the best way for buying olive oil. Even more if it is a private mill that produce their olive oils from olives harvested in their own olive fields.
There are many online shops to buy olive oil and extra virgin olive oil.
Below we propose you some clues to choose the most interesting ones.
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