Finally!

It's such a long wait from posting off my new harvest samples, and then getting the results back from the Golden Olive Awards. There's a few teasers along the way, too, to build the tension. A few weeks back we got the lab test results. Our oil tested very well, with a high polyphenal count and very low free fatty acids.

(The polyphenal count is used in the extra virgin olive oil classification, with 220mg per kg being regarded as high in polyphenals. We were 244. For an extra virgin olive oil, the objective percentage for free fatty acid is less than 0.8%. Our oil is less than 0.1%. )

Then, they also supply the judge's tasting comments. Our early pick oil had this description:
Aroma of spice, green grass, green banana and fresh walnuts abound with a good transfer to palate. Balanced bitterness and pungency with a luscious, creamy complexity. The chilli warmth lingers delicately on the palate.

Overall we did very well in the awards. Our early picked oil won a gold medal, the late pick a silver, and our infused rosemary, lemon and pepper oil also a silver. In a month or so we will also hear back from the Australian International Olive Awards. Different judges, different groupings, but in the end its a mix of the experienced judges' experiental tasting view and objective lab tests, so usually you expect to see similar results.

Gold medal for our 2023 early harvest frantoio extra virgin olive oil

The results from the Golden Olive Awards were very close. The accumulated points for our early pick oil were only one point less than the ultimate best in class, best in show entries. And only one point separated the top seven entries.

I'll never be a judge...I don't have the palate, and I get queasy if I taste more than 10 oils in a sitting. Tasting more than a hundred would wipe me out!

I do try and predict how our oil will go as a way of self-educating myself....but I am out of sync with the judges. I consistently rate our late-picked oil as better...its got a more lush, buttery feel to it, to my taste. But it consistently rates a few points behind by the judging process. (Last year there was a one point difference...this year three points.)

For what its worth, I have also done more formal training, like a "proper" sensory appraisal training course, where I realized I could improve my tasting skills, but I wasn't ever going to be doing it at the elite level! But if you are interested, you should keep an eye on Cobram Estate's brilliant online tasting sessions. The sessions themselves are very, very good, and you get to try their ultra-premium oils. )

Anyway, to wrap up, the final results from the Golden Olive Awards are published and available online. You can check for yourself who has done what and how it went.....

The oil, of course, is available via our local providores, and online.. We are also putting in a more regular appearance at local grower's markets. This month we will be at both the Bright Make It Bake It market and the Myrtleford Farmers' Market.