How To Select The Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil

With a plethora of extra virgin olive oils available nowadays both at your local grocery store and online, there is no wonder that there is a lot of confusion when choosing the best olive oil to purchase. Surely price is one factor in deciding which olive oil to purchase. But  there are many many more factors that should lead you to making the right purchase.

Let me take a step back to explain what I have learned about the health benefits of using quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO). According to the Olive Oil Source http://www.oliveoilsource.com/, " Well-documented by numerous studies around the world, the many health benefits of olive oil make it one of the most indispensable ingredients of a healthy diet. Naturally packed with monounsaturated fatty acids and antioxidants, not only can a good extra virgin olive oil lower your risk of heart disease and cancer, research has shown that it also provides a wide range of anti-inflammatory benefits that can positively impact illnesses such as diabetes, hypertension, arthritis, and asthma. Even the FDA suggests that replacing just two tablespoons of saturated fat with extra virgin olive oil in your daily diet can have measurable positive effects."

Quality EVOO is good for you because it reduces bad cholesterol levels and raises good cholesterol levels.  Quality EVOO "provides a high content of antioxidants, like polyphenols, vitamins E & K, chlorophyll and carotenoids. Antioxidants are key to strengthening the immune system and protecting the body from the damaging effects of free-radical molecules."  Furthermore it contains anti inflammatory agents.

EVOO is the purest of all the olive oils, is made without the use of chemicals or excessive heat and meets some organoleptic standards. It offers a minimum guarantee of quality. But not all EVOO are equal.  The less processing is involved in making olive oil, the greater the health benefits and the better the EVOO. The health benefits depend on how the oil was made, when olives were picked, how the oil was stored and many many more factors.

"The chemical characteristics of extra virgin olive oil (as with all vegetable oils) give an indication of the care with which it was made and stored: how the fruit was grown, transported and harvested, how it was milled into oil, and how the oil was packaged and bottled."  There are also many different flavors of olive oil but typically the more robust (pungent) the flavor, the greater number of antioxidants.

There are many olive oils available. The best being of Extra Virgin Olive Oil meaning it is of the purest form. Of these however there are the winners and the losers and many many in between. Extra virgin olive oils nowadays come from Italy, France, Spain, United States, Turkey, Greece.  Of the oils available not all of the producers have high standards and follow regulations to make the highest quality oils. In fact, many in order to offer the lowest priced oil sell old olive oil which has been sitting either in their warehouse or a distributors warehouse for months and even years on end. Others to cut corners may use a mixture of olives from different areas or regions that offer a cheaper harvest.  Some olive mills may pick their olives and then have them sitting on their mill floor for days or weeks before processing, collecting all sorts of mildew. The best oil is processed the same day of picking. Oil should be bottled right before delivery. Processing times should be very short.

With so much junk on the shelves, the best advice I can give someone who is purchasing olive oil is to read all the labels. Remember that just because an oil has an Italian name does not mean it is made in Italy. Even if the label reads Produced in Italy does not mean the olives are Italian. Also there is a great difference between oils produced in different regions in Italy for instance. Some olive  trees render a larger quantity of oil because the olive itself has more water content. This larger quantity available drives down the price for particular regions of Italy. Tuscan and Umbrian olives typically render less oil and therefore are more premium priced.

If the price is surprisingly low compared to the assortment, you are probably not getting a good deal but getting a lower quality product. Olive oil is expensive to produce and if it is being produced correctly, abiding to the highest standards, chances are you will have to pay for that.

What you can do when purchasing olive oil:

-make sure you read the labels and know what you are getting. Just because the oil is called "Tuscan Reserve" does not mean it is from Tuscany. Also even though it says Made in Italy does not always mean the olives are Italian. It may mean it was bottled in Italy but the olives are from Turkey.

-Is Italian olive oil the best? I  cannot say that it is or it is not. I know that the olive oil I use is the best because I know where it comes from and I know how it is made. I know the health qualities it has.

-Read the label to know when the oil was harvested. The best oil is the newest. There should also be an expiration date on the bottle.  You should not be paying a premium price for last year's harvest.

-When you can, purchase smaller bottles because the more times the bottle is opened, the more the oil is contaminated by air and loses its qualities both in flavor and health benefits.

-Never purchase plastic bottles;plastic kills the oil.

-The darker the glass bottle, the better, try not to purchase clear bottles. Olive oil needs to avoid heat or heat sources and clear bottles allow heat to enter.

-Where in the store are the bottles kept? Make sure they are not on top shelves near the lights.

-Unfiltered is not bad for you, instead it means that less processing was used and therefore it is of the purest form.

I am fortunate I know because I can pinpoint exactly where the olive oil I use comes from. My olive oil is an artisan olive oil and comes directly from the manufacturer I personally know.  I know what high standards the manufacture has. I have taken part in the harvest of the oil. I have visited the mill. I know even where the actual olive groves are that my oil came from. I know we cannot all be so fortunate. Afterall I live in what is known as "la patria dell'olio" or home of the olive oil.  I cringe however at seeing so many EVOO that are available and that are not of quality.

For information on how you can purchase the quality Tuscan extra virgin olive oil I use, please contact me or send me a comment via my blog.