Olio Nuovo

Over the past few weekends the Willamette Valley has gotten is foodie on in a major way. The weekend before Thanksgiving has been emerging over the past few years as the “aficionados” weekend. It’s before the Thanksgiving rush, so it is generally less crowded, and its historically more of a buying weekend, where Thanksgiving is a tasting weekend.

The Oregon Olive Mill combined it into a little bit of both, giving many Oregonians their first taste of Olio Nuovo, oil fresh off the press. There are quite a few people out there who are skeptical about the olive harvest in Oregon, and to be honest there are still a lot of unknowns, but people were skeptical about Pinot Noir 30 years ago, and look at the valley now!
The Olio Nuovo is the first press of the year, and has incredible flavor. Imagine the best olive oil you’ve ever had, and punch up the flavor about ten notches. It has almost a creamy texture, due to the large amount of organic sediment still in the oil. Typically we let this naturally filter out of the oil before we bottle. Though the oil loses a bit of its intensely fresh flavor, this gives it a remarkably longer shelf life. Due to the large amount of sediment, Olio Nuovo only stays good for about 90 days, but oh what a delightful 90 days! The flavor is sassy, punchy, green and seductive & the color of the oil is unreal! (please note that the color of the oil actually has nothing to do with the taste and flavor profile… but if you are looking for a gorgeous oil, in both color and flavor, the nuovo koroneiki is a fabulous chartreuse!)

                                                    Koroneiki Olio Nuovo
                                                           
I’ve been enjoying olio nuovo all week, and have tried putting it on just about everything. I would be perfectly content with a baguette and a bottle of oil, but my curiosity has lead me to try the oil on some less conventional things. Thus far I’ve discovered that it is quite tasty over scrambled eggs, broccoli, & savory French toast (sort of a substitute for syrup) Olive oil isn’t just Popeye’s companion anymore, and pairs with more than just pasta. It’s for breakfast, lunch and dinner… and based on the response Red Ridge Farms has been getting from the Oregonian Article, I think it’s a trend Oregon is going to be seeing a lot more of in the future.