Olive Oil Production

For a truly good olive oil it's necessary, above all, to start with olives which have been harvested while still a bit unripe and then to process them immediately. If the olives are allowed to mildew, rot or over-ripen, the oil is destined to be less than good. There are two fundamental phases is the processing of olives: the separation of the pulp (vegetable matter and pit) from the liquid (oil and juices) and then the separation of the oil from the water. These procedures both use the olive press, the more or less commercialized machines with several different levels of operation, both complex and delicate, similar to those used in wine-making. In short: mechanical pressing which extracts liquid through squeezing and/or centrifuge without the use of heat. Oil obtained in this way has to be set aside to rest for some time before it is filtered. This is the oil referred to as being of the "first cold pressing" (prima spremitura a freddo) and it is, undoubtedly, the best. This oil is in turn divided into "virgin olive oil" if the level of acidity is between 1- 2% , and extra-virgin if the level of acidity does not surpass 1% (it's the best of the best). There is also an oil comprised of sensa or husk oil mixed with olive oil. Husks are the discarded solids left behind by the initial squeezing process, which are squeezed again and refined by the addition of virgin oil. In the English-speaking world, olive oil has traditionally been divided into three grades, although the Italian terms are by now familiar to most. The English language denomination Pure Oil refers to oil extracted cold from the finest fresh olives in the first and second pressing. Oil exclusively taken from the first pressing is graded as follows, according to its oleic acid content:  4 % = Virgin  3 % = Fine 1.5 % = Superfine  1 % = Extra Virgin Second Grade oil is extracted by pressure under heat. Third grade oil is generally extracted from windfalls or fermented or preserved olives. It is often treated with sulphate of carbon and is intended for commercial use as lubricating oil, though it has been used for adulteration. back to: The Fruit

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