🏷️ Extra virgin olive oil
The top grade: oil obtained only by mechanical means, with no taste defects and acidity up to 0.8%.
Extra virgin olive oil is the highest of the olive oil categories defined by European Union law. Its label must explain this in plain words: superior category olive oil obtained directly from olives and solely by mechanical means.
The name has to be earned twice, in the laboratory and at the tasting table. Chemical analysis checks that free acidity is no more than 0.8 % and the peroxide value no more than 20. Then a panel of tasters tries the oil: they must find no defect at all in taste or smell, and they must detect fruitiness. If the defects are slight and acidity is up to 2 %, the oil drops one step to virgin. Anything worse becomes lampante and has to be refined.
An extra virgin label says more than it seems. Stating the place of origin is compulsory: a country, "European Union", a blend of oils, or a protected designation. The words "first cold pressing" are allowed only when the paste was pressed in a hydraulic press below 27 °C, and "cold extraction" only when the oil was separated by centrifuge at the same temperature. The harvest year may appear only if all the oil in the bottle comes from one season.
One curious rule: a producer may not boast of low acidity on its own. If acidity is printed, the peroxide value, wax content and ultraviolet absorption must stand next to it, because acidity alone does not say much about quality.
Composition per 100 g
| Fat | 100 g |
|---|---|
| Protein | 0 g |
| Carbohydrates | 0 g |
| Energy | 884 kcal |
What it includes
How it connects to Olives
🏷️ Extra virgin olive oil → made from → 🫒 Olives
Links
- Previous step
- 🔄 Olive oil filtration
- Packed in
- 🍼 Bottle
- Made from
- 🫒 Olives
- How it is made
- ❄️ Cold pressing
- Used in
- 🥗 Salad, 🏛️ Mediterranean diet
- Where it is stored or sold
- 🏪 Shop
- Who works with it
- 👅 Olive oil taster
- What it contains
- 🧪 Oleic acid, 🍷 Polyphenols, 🧪 Oleuropein
- Part of
- 🫒 Olive oil
- Similar and different
- 🏷️ Virgin olive oil
- In other topics
- 🍷 Wine tasting
Frequently asked questions
What is the acidity of extra virgin olive oil?
No more than 0.8 %.
What does "cold extraction" mean?
That the oil was obtained by centrifuge or percolation with the paste kept below 27 °C.
Can the harvest year be shown?
Yes, but only if all the oil in the bottle comes from one harvest.
What to read next
- 🧪 Oleic acid — A monounsaturated fatty acid, the main one in olive oil; Kalamata oil contains 70–80 %.
- 🍷 Polyphenols — A large family of substances in skins and seeds: colour, tannins, resveratrol.
- 🔄 Olive oil filtration — Passing fresh oil through a filter to remove haze and water droplets.
- 🏪 Shop — The point of sale, where milk sits in a chilled display.
- 🧪 Oleuropein — The bitter substance of fresh olives; harmless, but the reason olives are not eaten straight from the tree.
Similar
🏷️ Virgin olive oil · 🏷️ Lampante olive oil · 🏷️ Refined olive oil · 🏷️ Olive pomace oil