How our EVOOs are made:

HARVEST

Throughout the year, the olive tree is the protagonist of everything, which is why it is treated with care and care by our farmers and field technicians.

The field technicians, who are agronomists from API Sierra Sur. (Integrated Production Association) observe and study in detail both the appropriate treatments and fertilizers for the tree, as well as the optimal ripening point of the fruit to begin the campaign.

To obtain the so-called green or early harvest oil, the harvest time is in mid or late October and for flight olives. These first days of harvest usually last around a week and all the efforts of the technical staff and the farmers are focused on obtaining the highest quality, in the field and in the oil mill, taking care of each step of the process to obtain a quality EVOO. superior.

Come November, the campaign will begin continuously, and we will continue to obtain high-quality olive juices, from olives in veraison, that is, when the fruit is ripening and turning violet. A high quality EVOO is obtained with less intense flavors on the palate than the October one.

In December and onwards, the olive will already be black, that is, it is ripe and will have to be picked before it falls to the ground, since the oils from mature soil olives will be lampantes, oils not suitable for human consumption and which have They have to be refined in the refinery to remove the bad smell and taste and be able to be put on the market.

Our cooperative only bottles extra virgin olive oil, that is, from healthy, flying olives, from the months of October, November and December, which marks the character and fruity aromas of each of them, with the maximum intensity in October and This decreases as the fruit ripens.

THE BACKYARD

The olive mill patio is one of the most important areas since the olives are received and classified there. We always look for the best caliber and healthy fruit, because the quality of our oils will depend on it, but the olive is also cleaned and washed to separate the leaves, stones, dust and ultimately dirt that it may bring from the field. Once cleaned, the conveyor belts take our olives to the hoppers where they will fall into the mill to be ground.

GRINDING

In the mill the olive is cut to transform it into a mass composed of two phases: a solid one made up of the stone and skin and a liquid one that contains the olive water and oil. That is why extra virgin olive oil is pure olive juice obtained only through mechanical procedures.

OIL EXTRACTION

The oil is extracted at a low temperature “cold”. Firstly, we will beat the paste resulting from the grinding to separate the solid phase from the liquid phase. And then through centrifugation we will complete that separation. In the mixer you usually begin to see large drops of oil on the dough.

FILTERED AND STORED

Filtering is another of the important processes in the production of EVOO since it eliminates possible impurities (bone remains, dust...) that may have been carried over in the previous processes and therefore extends the life of the EVOO. It is done by decantation and then in a cellulose filter.

Before this final filtering process, the oils will have been classified for packaging in the different ranges.

Without filtering, the oil will be denser, a little cloudy in color, and deposits will appear after a short time. Our cooperative does not sell unfiltered oils.

Storage is also essential. Our winery is made up of stainless steel tanks that allow us to store more than 4,000,000 kg of virgin and extra virgin olive oil. The winery is perfectly insulated at the optimal temperature. The tanks are inerted to maintain the quality of the oils until they are bottled and reach the market.