Seven reasons for our excellent oil

A typical Tuscan olive grove

Situated on a hill, with large natural terraces facing south, the olive grove is mainly composed of the most typical Tuscan varieties of olives: Leccini, Correggioli and Moraioli. The blending of these varieties gives the oil its typical Tuscan taste, fruity and spicy at the same time.

Natural care of the olive grove

 We take care of the olive grove as farmers have done for centuries: pruning regularly to air the plants and eliminate pollen and suckers, using natural and organic fertilizer and maintaining permanent grass under the foliage without using chemical products.

 Early harvesting

 We harvest the olives as early as possible after the colour changes (from green to black) and well before complete maturation, when the olives and the oil have reached their maximum quality and still have not started the process of a slow deterioration.

Hand harvesting

 To have only fresh and undamaged olives, we pick them by hand on the branches, avoiding picking overripe or damaged olives fallen on the ground. For the highest branches we use long electric vibrating poles in order to limit the use of ladders which are always dangerous.

Daily transport to the olive press

 Every day we take the harvested olives to the press in small crates which protect them against damage. The olives, still very fresh, are washed, and the oil extraction process begins immediately.

Cutting-edge extraction process

The olive press runs on a continuous cycle, without anti-hygienic manipulation during the process: the olives enter and the oil exits. The extraction process is ‘cold press’ at a temperature less than 27°C. To separate the oil from the olive skins, the paste of crushed olives is centrifuged without adding water. Our press is one of the few in the Sienese area to utilize this technique: it extracts less oil but the chemical-organoleptic properties of the oil are unchanged as it is not diluted with water. At the end, the oil is cleaned mechanically, without filters, so its characteristics are not altered.

High standard of preservation

 After less than ten hours from harvest and two hours from arrival at the olive press, the oil is ready. It is transferred immediately to a special, large stainless steel tank already containing the oil extracted in the preceding days. The tank is hermetically sealed, with nitrogen instead of oxygen, and it is placed in a room which is constantly temperature controlled (16°C). Thus, the oil is perfectly protected from its principal enemies: light, oxygen and temperature variations.