A few years ago, on holiday in Tuscany I was able to visit both a vineyard and an Olive Grove. I do not like Olives, Mrs R loves them.

However I do like a good Olive Oil. Regretably the way I used to like it was with huge chunks of italian bread dipped in the oil as a great pre-starter to an Italian meal.

Olive Oils in Italy are very much like fine wines (I was in the Chianti region), the smaller producers are sought after for the quality and taste of their product and a price to match!. Weather, olive variety and location are very much a factor in the taste, colour and quality.

Virgin and extra- virgin are not necessarily an indication of either quality or taste. The words are used for a chemical standard of acidity and not quality.

Most Olive oil is cold pressed. But the riper the olive the greater the acidity. The first pressings of the season the olives are less ripe and the acidity is lower. Provided it comes in under 1% it can be called extra-virgin.

Olive oil is made only from green olives. Nearly the entire production of green olives in italy is converted into olive oil.

Premium Select Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
This is the top grade of olive oil. With a lower rate of acidity than 1%. Some as low as .225%. This level of quality can only be achieve one way - through hand harvesting and pressing within 24 hours.

Extra-Virgin Olive Oil:
Any olive oil that is less than 1% acidity, produced by the first pressing of the olive fruit through the cold pressing process. Most olive oils today are extra virgin in name only, meeting only the minimum requirement.

Virgin Olive Oil:
It is made from olives that are slightly riper than those used for extra-virgin oil and is produced in exactly the same manner. This oil has a slightly higher level of acidity (1 1/2%).

Pure Olive Oil:
A general purpose oil, not really for the table but the food industry. It is solvent-extracted from olive pulp, skins, and pits; then refined. It is light and bland. Pure refers to the fact that no non-olive oils are mixed in.

So how should a good extra-virgin olive oil taste?

Smooth, robust, balanced, rounded, peppery, any of these words are good and with no significant aftertaste.

Bad oil? Cat's Piss!