In full olive harvest we enter deep La Mancha to learn first-hand how this process is carried out, which is essential so that, once the EVOO is being marketed, it receives worldwide recognition.
It’s what they’re used to Los Palacios estate (Almagro)where the Palacio de los Olivos EVOO is made (the most awarded in the world) and where they are right now with the collection campaign for the Picual and Arbequina varieties.
What better place to receive proper training than this community that sits on Calatrava lands of volcanic origin and in which you can enjoy 365 days of the year that characteristic La Mancha climate, cold in winter and warm in summer, which brings a certain uniqueness to the olives that are grown here every year.
How is the olive harvest?
First of all, it should be noted that in each campaign they are collected at the Los Palacios estate, which has 280 hectares of olive groves, around 200 tons of Picual olives and almost 90 of Arbequina. And when is the time to do it? Very simple, they begin to be harvested when it is observed that they are at their optimum ripening moment (as long as the weather is favourable).
“It usually coincides with the second fortnight of October, when the olives are very green in color and they begin to grow small yellow spotswhich indicate that the olives are fully formed, developed and that they contain the maximum load of oil and micronutrients (polyphenols = natural antioxidants)”, as he explains. Raul Moramanager of Palacio de Los Olivos.
Initially, they deposit the olives in meshes. In this way, direct contact with the ground and the adherence of impurities are avoided. Next, are transported to the mill in small stainless steel trailers, so as not to pile them up. You should know that this mill is strategically located in the middle of the olive grove so that the time that passes from the detachment of each olive until it reaches the reception hoppers in the patio is as short as possible and allows maintain its freshness and characteristics intrinsic physical-chemical. In this way, the oil extraction process begins with a raw material of the highest quality.
Palacio de Los Olivos – Gourmet Picual Extra Virgin Olive Oil – Cold Pressed, Early Harvest – Pack of 2 500ml Bottles
Who is in charge of doing it?
As for the personnel in charge of doing so, it should be clarified that “anyone who is interested in working on olive harvesting can do so, because the requirements to harvest them correctly are few and clear, and no degree needed“. As Mora tells us, the collector must only meet these requirements: that he be an active worker and that he be somewhat fit, although “it will always be better if they have experienceespecially in the use of specific machinery and tools, because depending on the type of collection, different ones are used”.
Going into more detail, if you have ever considered working as an olive harvester, you should know that in the case of Palacio de los Olivos, “the campaign barely lasts a month and the olive harvest it is done in the morningan eight-hour day”. As for the profile of the workers, Raúl tells us that “this year 70 expert people have been hired and that the most usual thing is that it is a crew of foreigners or people from other provinces, especially men and of very varied ages”.
Finally, clarify that these professionals are carrying out this work following a protocolsince the olives are separated by varieties and all the work is carried out by mechanical procedures, so as not to damage the olive tree.
Okay, but how is the extraction of the oil done?
Once we have the olives in the hoppers in the patio -which is covered precisely to protect the olives from sunlight, heat and rain- they begin their journey along conveyor belts for food use that serve as a starting point for the different phases that will allow us to extract this delicious, as well as aromatic, olive juice:
Phase 1: Olive cleaning. It is done to discard those possible leaves and small twigs that may have slipped in during the harvest.
Phase 2: Verification of its quality and weighing.
Phase 3: Cold grinding and churning for several minutes. This is how they become a suitable mass to extract the oil.
Phase 4: Natural extraction of the oil by centrifugal force leaving the oil in a central ring (passing through a food pipe to the vertical centrifuge), and the skin, meat and bone in side rings (passing through a food pipe to another process of separation of the spindle because they reuse it as natural fuel).
Phase 5: Oil cleaning in vertical centrifuge and filtration. It is carried out with the aim of eliminating possible microparticles.
Phase 6: The resulting oil is stored in stainless steel tanks for food use. In this last step, food nitrogen comes into play, thanks to which it is possible to avoid oxidation and preserve the EVOO so that it is as freshly made. It will remain resting in its cellar, at a constant temperature, with hardly any natural light or humidity.
Once the oil has been produced, it is analyzed at an official external laboratory, to certify your classification, the parameters on its composition and its organoleptic attributes. But we’ll leave that for the next visit.
You are probably wondering now how much time passes since the olives are harvested until the jugs or bottles are on the supermarket shelves. The manager of Palacio de los Olivos also clarifies it for us: “We collect all the olives, we grind them in a month, we store the oil obtained in our cellar at a constant temperature and we pack it on request, so that it does not lose its properties over time. Between November and December, each year, we already market our oils”.
The olive is the key, no matter where
Contrary to what some may think, “what makes each extra virgin olive oil unique is not determined by which one is elaborated in a specific community or provincebut the type of olive grown, its variety and intrinsic characteristics: the soil and climate of the region on which the olive trees grow, the extra care that can be given to the olive grove during the year and, above all, the key is the olive harvest time, the point of maturation in which it isits temperature, the time that elapses in its transfer to grinding, the strict grinding and oil extraction process decided by each oil mill master, the machinery used and the general neatness with which the production process is followed until the perfect storage of the obtained oil.
There is no doubt that we are talking about a process, that of production of high quality oil, which is costly and complicated in equal parts. “We focus on achieving excellence, and so much effort on the part of the entire team is rewarded when its consumption increases nationally and when we market our oils in more and more countries.” This is confirmed by the awards, since Palacio de los Olivos has received more than 30 gold medals of different national and international expert tasting panels, which has led them to accumulate more than 200 medals in their commercial career and to position themselves in the world ranking number 10 of oils “The EVOO World Ranking” in both varieties.
Before saying goodbye, we can’t help but ask Mora about the quality of the fruit this year and to what extent it will influence the final result, in that oil that in a few months we will all be able to use for countless recipes. “Every year we take exceptional care of our olive grove, because it is the basis of a good oil.” To which he adds: “The number of hours of sunshine, of water, of heat and cold, of soil nutrients and so on, are determining factors for the development of our olive trees and olivesand nature provides it to us on our farm in a very particular way, since we are on soil of volcanic origin and under the unique climate of La Mancha”.
This care and attention result in “a healthy and fresh olive, which we carefully collect in green (essential if we want to produce high-quality oil), and that is what we achieve: 100% natural premium extra virgin olive oil, loaded with fruit and herbaceous aromas, with a fresh, spicy and balanced bitter taste, and with very healthy natural micronutrients.”
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