Always present on Mediterranean tables, extra virgin olive oil is a food that must have certain characteristics from both a chemical and organoleptic point of view.
Today many know how to recognize and appreciate a quality wine, but for oil it is a whole other story, although they are both symbolic products of our country and also of Lake Garda.
The concept of taste is relative, but some consumers have become accustomed to a distorted taste and this is recognized by the use of terms as “normal” and “good”, but this is not an indication of quality.
Taste understood as the pleasure derived from food is linked to many factors. Some can be related to the real quality or healthiness of food, others can be the result of conditioning, habits and advertising. We need to understand how to combine the “I like” or “I don’t like” with “I recognize the quality”
To recognize the quality and appreciate its taste, the oil must have certain characteristics and not others. A quality oil must be more or less intensely fruity depending on the variety of olives and the area of origin. This means that it must remember the olive, the fresh and clean fruit.
Some flavors of the oil, on the other hand, must alarm us because the product has deteriorated.
Earthy flavor typical of muddy and uncleaned olives.
Taste of sludge, when the oil has been in contact with the decanting sludge for too long. Typical of unfiltered oils
Taste of heating or reminiscent of wine or vinegar, characteristic of oil obtained from olives piled and fermented in containers without oxygen.
Taste of mold-humidity, characteristic of oil obtained from old and moldy olives or olives harvested from the ground.
Rancid taste is found in poorly preserved or old oils that have undergone an oxidative process.
In order to recognize the quality of the oil and appreciate its taste, it is very important to taste it before buying. Unfortunately, this is not possible in normal shops or supermarkets. Instead at the Frantoio Manestrini it is possible to taste the oil produced directly from its own olives (DOP Garda Bresciano, Monovarietali Leccino and Casaliva, Organic) and you can buy typical Garda products: wines, grappa, olives and vegetables in oil, flavored oils , sauces and pasta as well as natural cosmetics based on extra virgin olive oil.
