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CAMILLO V
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QUALITY
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JUST LIKE WINES OR WHISKEYS, THERE ARE MANY OLIVE OIL GRADES AND QUALITIES
Ancient Romans already understood that there was a direct relationship between time of harvest, method of harvest and the quality of the finished Olive Oil. In fact, already 2,000 years ago, the Romans classified the Olive Oils in five different categories:
(I) Oleum Ex Albis Ulivis Was the best Olive Oil because it was the first Oil of the season obtained from olives harvested early by hand (probably in November). It was used as a base to make fragrances, for religious rituals and it was available for consumption only to the ruling classes.
(II) Oleum Viride This was also obtained from Olives harvested by hand but at a later stage of maturation, probably between December and January.
(III) Oleum Maturum This was obtained from even riper olives, still harvested by hand, but collected up to the end of the winter when they were completely black.
(IV) Oleum Caducum Was from olives fallen to the ground because over-ripe that had been collected from under the tree.
(V) Oleum Cibarium This was the lowest quality Olive Oil because it was obtained from old and rotten olives and was to be consumed by slaves.
EU LEGISLATION ONLY RECOGNISES 4 GRADES OF OLIVE OIL
This is a good starting point but, because of modern technology and chemistry capabilities, there are many more Olive Oil qualities and grades that the legislator has not taken into consideration as yet.
For example, the labelling ''Extra Virgin Olive Oil'' (the top grade that the EU recognises) assures nothing else but that no chemical processes were used for the extraction and that the acidity content is less than 0.8%. This means very little because 0.8% is not very low (if compared to Olio Nuovo Camillo typical natural acidity of 0.25%) and because the 0.8% treshold can be easily manipulated with modern technology and clever blending.
DEFINITION OF OLIO NUOVO CAMILLO
According to EU legislation, Olio Nuovo Camillo is defined as:
''Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Superior category olive oil obtained directly from olives and solely by mechanical means''.
This description is aready a bit of a mouthfull but a more complete one would go something like this:
Unfiltered Monocultivar Single Estate Extra Virgin Olive Oil obtained exclusivelly by first cold extraction from a typical local variety of early harvested olives cultivated with traditional farming methods in Daunia.
Since there is only one way to make the best EVOO, we produce only and exclusively one type of EVOO.
We just call it OLIO NUOVO CAMILLO.
THE UNIQUE HEALTH ATTRIBUTES OF GENUINE EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OILS
Genuine EVOO is the healthiest alimentary fat because of its unique health giving composition.
Its biochemical composition is similar to maternal milk and its consumption is healthy and highly recommended by nutritionists across the globe to both young and older peoples alike.
To have a healthy diet, you must feed your body proteins, carbohydrates and fats.
A common misplaced belief is that all fats are dangerous because they increase cholesterol blood level that, in turn, increases the occurrence of thrombosis, atherosclerosis and infarct.
While this is true for most alimentary fats, when it comes to Genuine Extra Virgin Olive Oil, exactly the opposite is true. In fact, EVOO reduces LDL ''bad cholesterol'' and increases the HDL lipoproteins ''good cholesterol'' that clears the arteries and protect from arterial obstruction.
There are as many as 5mg of antioxidant polyphenols in every 10gr. of olive oil. Most other nut and seed oils have virtually no polyphenols.
We put a great deal of care into:
• The freshest and richest possible taste and flavour.
• Extracting and Maintaining the maximum antioxidant contents.
• Minimising the acidity content.
• Maintaining the fragrance of freshly extracted EVOO as long as possible.
HERE BELOW WE EXPLAIN HOW WE ACHIEVE THE QUALITY OF OUR OLIO NUOVO CAMILLO
• SINGLE ESTATE: In Contrada Daunia, Foggia, Puglia, Italia.
• SINGLE CULTIVAR: 100% Peranzana Olives from Traditional Farming
• SINGLE EARLY HARVEST: Carried out by Hand in November
• SINGLE COLD EXTRACTION: Within 24 hours from Harvest
NOT Blended - NOT Filtered
The production of fine quality EVOO is a complex, laborious and skilled art because there is not a single most important factor that determines the quality of the output. In fact, there are many delicate processes and they all need to be carried out at specific times and in specific ways in order to acheve the very best possible quality.
SINGLE ESTATE
Each Bottle or Refill Drum of Olio Nuovo Camillo contains only and exclusively EVOO extracted from olives grown in a single estate in Daunia. This assures you that the quality of your EVOO has been monitored at every stage of its production from the very beginning. Also, Singe Estate EVOOs have well defined and unique characters that the EVOOs made for the mass market do not have because they are blends of unspecified origins.
SINGLE CULTIVAR – V - BLENDS
Just like Single Malt Whiskeys, Monocultivar EVOOs are far superior to blended ones. EVOOs made for the mass market are usually blended to standardise the flavours, to hide difects or worse, to fix old or spoilt oil stocks that otherwise might not be edible.
We produce only and exclusively MonoCultivar Extra Virgin Olive Oil in order to retain all the special characteristics and all the typical fragrances and flavours that quality EVOOs have.
SINGLE EARLY HARVEST (carried out by Hand in November)
Single Harvest means that we never blend Olive Oils from different seasons. Since Extra Virgin Olive Oil contains more antioxidants and has much fuller flavours when young, Olio Nuovo Camillo is extracted only and exclusively from olives from the latest harvest (November). Since all Olive Oils (and also most EVOOs) marketed by supermarkets are blends of different Olive Oils, mass market Olive Oils are often blends of new and old Olive Oils.
Our Olio Nuovo Camillo is alive and, just like good wines, its characteristics will change from harvest to harvest but unlike good wines, EVOO is best consumed fresh. In fact, the fresher, the better.
Early Harvest means that we harvest the Olives early in November before they reach full maturity. Early harvest is expensive for the farmer because it diminishes the output of EVOO because it decreases both the yield of Olive per Tree and the yield of EVOO per Kg. of Olives.
On the oter hand, the quality of EVOO extracted from fruits that have not reached full maturity maximises the antioxidant contents, obtains the lowest possible acidity and retains the wonderful spicy fruity flavours of the fresh fruit.
Also, since we harvest early, we bring to market NEW SEASON EVOO just before Christmas.
Harvest by Hand means that we collect the Olive Fruits by hand (when they are still alive) directly from the tree.
There is a wide spectrum of harvesting methods still in use today. Depending on the local culture and on the objectives of the farmer (low costs/quality – V - high costs/quality), the farmer will:
• hand pick the olives directly from the tree when they are not ripe yet if quality is paramount.
• beat the trees with large poles or shake them with heavy machineries but this is possible only when the olives are very ripe.
• sweep the olives from the ground under the tree where they have fallen but obviously they are over-ripe and often already rotten.
Hand harvesting is the most expensive and labour intensive method (costing more than 50% the actual market value of the harvested fruits) but it produces a superior quality EVOO for 2 main reasons: (1) it allows the farmer to harvest and express at the best preferred time of maturation and (2) it minimises bashing and bruising and the olives reach the mill in a healtier state. Bruised fruits oxidate sooner and set off rotting and fermentation process. This means that the resulting EVOO is healthier, contains more vitamines and antioxidants and unique flavours and fragrances.
Since hand harvesting is one of the most important factors to obtain the best possible olive oil quality, Olio Nuovo Camillo is made only and exclusively with Olives harvested by hand.
From the shape of an olive tree, you can have a good idea of the quality of the Olive Oil the farmer intends to produce. In fact, if the tree has been pruned into a short and wide shape, it means that the farmer intends harvesting by hand in order to obtain a top quality olive oil.
Also, the terrain just under the tree is another good quality indicator because, where the practice is to sweep the Olives off the ground, a circle of hard soil will be clearly visible right under each tree.
Hence, trees left to grow tall (up to 10m or even more) are bad news where else short and wide trees (shaped like wine glasses with a maximum hight of 4-5m) clearly indicates that the farmer is investing a lot of work in order to produce a top quality EVOO.
Trees shaped correctly for hand picking receive a ''rejuvenation'' pruning (at polyconic vases.) once every 3 years. This rotational pruning method gives excellent fruits but is quite expensive not only because of the skilled labour it requires but also because it means that the trees will bear fruits only 2 years out of 3.
SINGLE COLD EXTRACTION (within 24 hours from Harvest)
Single Extraction means that Olio Nuovo Camillo is extracted only and exclusively from the first crushing of the Olive fruits with a modern Centrifugal Extraction method. The old hydraulic press method is not very efficient and it often required a second or even a third pressing to extract as much Oil as possible. Olive Oil obtained from First Pressing/Extraction is substantially superior to Olive Oil obtained by second and third pressing because there often require hot boiling water and/or chemical solvents to make sure that the very last drop of oil is extracted.
Only Olive Oils obtained from First Pressing/Extraction are classifiable as Extra Virgins but this is true only if their acidity if inferior to 0.8% and if they do not present defects.
The modern Centrifugal Extraction method produces superior EVOOs to the Traditional Cold Press method because the extraction process is shorter and also because much of it happens in closed stainless steel chambers and not in the open air.
A shorter exposure to air reduces the oxidation of the resulting EVOO which retains more fruitiness and antioxidants.
Cold Extraction means that the extraction process is carried out at low temperatures as it never exceeds 27°C throughout all extraction stages. It is important not to use heat in the extraction process because, even if heat increases the yield of the oil extracted from the pulp, this process ''cooks'' the oil and destroys some of the most important organolettic features.
Within 24 hours from Harvest means that the Olive Fruits are crushed and expressed straight after the harvest and always within the first 24 hours. The time lap between harvesting and expressing is critical because longer times increase the acidity contents of the Oil.
NOT BLENDED
Olio Nuovo Camillo is made from a single variety of Olive from a single harvest time.
NOT FILTERED
Filtering removes most of the particles in suspension in the oil and makes it more clear and transparent. Most EVOO produced for the mass markets are filtered because, where harvest and extraction have been carried out with fast industrial methods, filtering extends the shelf life of the product.
Olio Nuovo Camillo is rigorously not filtered because this process also removes the olive pulp and skin particles that we like to see in suspension in the oil. In fact, industrial filtering decreases the unique nutritional qualities of the Oil and its taste.
We do not need to filter our oil to achieve a longer shelf-life because we prefer investing a little more in hygiene standards during harvesting and extraction.
In this way, we obtain a more wholesome EVOO that retains all its unique polyphenols, chlorophyll and vitamins that are the main responsible for a strong antioxidant action against free radicals and for the unique fragrances and flavours of Olio Nuovo Camillo.
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