Gourmet Living Releases New Tuscan Extra Virgin Olive Oil

  GREENWICH, CT - 07/04/2016 (PRESS RELEASE JET)

Gourmet Living has just released its 2015 late harvest extra virgin olive oil from Tuscany.   This "traditional" Tuscan blend is produced from the region's 3 main varieties of olives:  Frantoio (50%), Moraiolo (30%) and Leccino (approximately 20%)

Olives used in this oil have been harvested from trees on the undulating hills south of Florence (“Firenze“).  Olives are collected in the morning and crushed in the afternoon to extract the highest quality of oil with the maximum level of freshness and antioxidant compounds.  Olives used in making this Tuscan blend are typically harvested between the 15th of October and the 20th of November.  

Green or half-colored olives tend to have the best combination of aroma and color.  While ripe olive produce a higher yield of oil, its aroma and quality tends to suffer when compared to “younger” olives that have not matured on the tree.  The olives are crushed at a temperature below 27ºC (81ºF), a process which lasts about 40 minutes. The resulting oils are then cold-extracted in a very modern olive oil mill to preserve its freshness.  In general, 100 kilos of olives produces 12 kilos of olive oil.

Tuscan olives are usually small and production per tree is quite low when compared to oils produced in the south of Italy and Spain.  Typically, olive oil production is about one liter per tree per year.  This is why the flavor of Tuscan olive oil is very concentrated and intense and the oil is so pleasant. The production of Gourmet Living’s blend is from the southern area of Florence, near where Chianti Classico is produced, and incorporates the best of old and new production techniques.

Olive oil is at the heart of the Mediterranean diet which evidence suggests has many important nutritional and health benefits.  Many American cooks are discovering the joy of using extra virgin olive oil to flavor salads and roasted vegetables.