How to choose your olive oil?

Choosing your olive oil is not always easy: what taste, how to preserve it? And then there is the question of whether it is a fraud.

We have seen that the market for olive oil is not very reliable and it is better not to buy oil with your eyes closed. Here is a collection of practical advice to comprar aceite de oliva according to everyone's preferences and keep it well.

How to recognize a quality olive oil

As for wine or cigars, for example, the prices of olive oil vary very strongly: from 3 to 60 euros per bottle. Should we then rely on the price?

No, because the price is not always a guarantee of quality. It is rather a criterion of rarity. We must beware of extra virgin olive oils sold at a derisory price. So how can you avoid buying mixed, low quality oil or worse, fake extra-virgin olive oil with dubious content?

What is fraudulent olive oil?

It is an oil that does not clearly display the origin of the olives and the region of origin to hide a mixture of different olive oils or worse, products that are not.

Choose your olive oil: how to navigate?

Do not think that it is easy to distinguish an untreated oil from a trafficked oil, to the eye or even to smell. To be sure, you have to test the oils in the laboratory by calculating the oleic acid content in the oil.

The characteristics of an oil denote its origin: one can theoretically rely on the taste but one must be a specialist and then, in-store how to do?

An olive oil from southern Spain often has a taste of red fruits. A green olive oil (grass, almond) or black olive (undergrowth, truffle) can be an olive oil AOC des Baux.

Only solution, read the label carefully. On the label look for the origin of the oil. Indication of provenance is not mandatory but it is good to inquire, because if it is indicated, it is often good sign.

Why provenance is important

Until November 2001, the indication of the origin of the olives on the labels was not obligatory: only the origin of the mills where they were pressed should be indicated and not those of the olives. However, the origin of the olives and the origin of the olive oil constitute the first criterion of quality.

In fact, the characteristics of an oil result from a combination of "  variety of olives - harvesting method - oil extraction method " which varies according to the conditions specific to each region and that only a technological contribution can blur. The origin of the oil is mentioned when it is rewarding. Two scenarios:

• The geographical area of ​​origin has the right to display an appellation (AOC, AOP, DOP, PGI) as will be seen below.

• Otherwise, only the country or zone of origin of the oil (France, Spain, Italy, or EU for example) is allowed. The mention of the department or region (as Tuscan olive oil) is forbidden (unless it corresponds to a registered designation area, case # 1).

The origin must be indicated, but the indication "  Europe " is sufficient. When a dealer packages the product, he puts his name and address in the area, sometimes playing with confusion. Over time, each region of production develops a known balance of professionals between quality and performance depending on the seasons.