Istria – Region of divine olive oil
The tradition of olive growing dates back ancient Rome which recognized Istria as the ideal land for cultivating this most famous Mediterranean elixir. Archaeological sites along the coast clearly show that Istria had quite large olive oil production capacities which are by size, unique in our wider surroundings...
According to world standards, Istrian olive oil is of the highest quality, and you can taste it if you follow the olive oil routes with marked oil mills and cellars of the best Istrian olive growers. They will be glad to share all the secrets of their trade with you, after which comes the time for tasting olive oil, that flowing gold bringing health, youth and beauty!
You will discover different tastes at different olive growers. From the autochthonous species, you will probably taste the buža and Istrian bjelica oil, but the foreign species also do extremely well in Istria - the soft leccino, the piquant pendolino and frantoio, and the others. Depending on the imagination and affinities of the producer, you will also meet the mixtures of the species. It is important to point out that the local olive oils are systematically building their images on the high quality, not on the produced quantities.
'New oil, old wine' even the folk saying has it that, unlike wine, olive oil loses quality over time. So it is advisable to use it within a year from the date of production, although a bottle, if well closed and adequately stored, can also be used in the second year. Oil must be kept from direct light and heat, and once opened, the bottle must be corked after every usage. In this way the precious, but unstable antioxidants are preserved in oil.
Extra virgin olive oil is the purest product that an olive may provide. It is made by cold pressing, without additives or heating, and therefore all valuable substances, which make the olive oil one of the best quality food in human diet, remain preserved.
If you try it and feel the intensive taste of the product, along the mild burning sensation in your throat, don't panic. The mild burning sensation is the impeccable sign that you have just tried the top quality product.
You should therefore enjoy the rich taste of fresh oil which reveals the health and the quality.
