The Complexities of Tasting Olive Oil

If I were to start this piece with merely a description of how to taste olive oil without mentioning olive oil, you would think I was describing how to taste a wonderful pinot noir or an expensive brandy. Take the glass of golden, amber green and cup it in your hands. The bowl should be warmed from the heat of your hand which enhances the aroma. Place your palm over the top of the glass and swirl the liquid to distribute around the glass and aerate. Then take in a deep breath and smell the full aroma with your nose deep within the glass. This creates a full sensory experience that awakens the palate. Then sip and at the same time take in a little air. In other words, slurp it into your mouth. This process distributes the oil evenly across your mouth and releases the additional characteristics of the oil that are hidden within. When you swallow, there should be no off putting after taste. The 4 steps of tasting olive oil: swirl, sniff, slurp, and swallow.

Now that you have tasted a good olive oil how do you describe it? In the official world of olive oil tasting and judging, there are 16 sensory classes and 72 flavor descriptions. That is a lot of olfactory discernment for sure. For most of us with the average nose and expertise, we are most familiar with fruitiness, bitterness, and pungency. Fruitiness denotes the fresh grassiness, that meadow-like, green oliveness with hints of tropical fruit like bananas or a nutty quality like artichokes. Pungency is reflected in the pepperiness that hits you in the back of the throat as the oil warms when you swallow. This is considered a good quality and actually expected. The intensity of this peppery characteristic can range from a slight tingling sensation at the back of the throat to a downright cough inducing reaction. Bitterness in olive oil is also considered a positive attribute. It does take some getting used to. This is the distinct taste in fresh olives. That is why fresh olives are cured when the olives become table olives. Bitterness in olives is directly related to the ripeness of the fruit. Olives that are riper produce oil that is softer and more buttery with a smoothness that does not grab at you. Olives that are greener produce a strong bitter note that is immediately evident. These 3 markers; fruitiness, pungency, and bitterness, provide the framework in which olive oils are classified in a broader sense. These broad categories are oils that are considered mild, medium, or robust.

The Olive Wagon has 4 different extra virgin olive oils that represents each of these 3 categories. The Moroccan oil is pleasant, smooth and very similar to the California Mission that is a customer favorite. If you prefer an oil that is milder and very user friendly, the Moroccan oil is a nice example. The Greek Koroneiki and the Spanish Premium Picual are great examples of a medium olive oil. Both have a fresh grassiness with a distinct herbal quality and a nice peppery finish that is pleasing and acceptable. The Italian Ogliarola is a more robust oil with a pronounced flavor profile that is equal notes of bitterness and pungency and a nice peppery finish (but not cough inducing).

Enjoy your oils and try these methods when tasting the oils. It’s remarkable what happens when the true nature of the olive oil is released. That is when you can really appreciate the lovely qualities of this amazing and mysterious natural wonder of the culinary world.