Il Nuovo Olio d’Oliva è Arrivato!

The new Olive Oil harvest has arrived at Cheese Plus

Recently we featured fresh and lively Beaujolais Nouveau wine from France – the young, just pressed and fermented first wine of the season.  Today I’m going to introduce you to Olio Nuovo d’Oliva – the first pressed Olive Oil of the season, which has just arrived at Cheese Plus.

Olives ripen and mature late in the year, and are typically harvested in late autumn.  To celebrate the harvest, the freshly pressed olive oil is made available on a limited basis.  More typically the olive oil that was harvested and produced just 3 – 6 weeks ago is allowed to settle and mellow; waiting for shipment to the market sometime in the springtime of the new year.  So most of the oil available today was actually harvested in the late autumn of 2007.

The Olio Nuovo (or Novello as it’s known in Southern Italy) is vibrant green in color, with a thick silky texture, and the unmistakable aroma of freshly cut grass; and spicy black pepper, sweet fennel, bright green apple, artichoke and olive leaf flavors.  Olio Nouvo is the most intense and full flavored olive oil available.   Pour this green elixir over your best bread – I like the Acme Bakery Long Italian loaf or their not-so-well-known Upstairs Bread we offer.  For cooking I recommend serving this as a finishing oil on flavorful cold weather roasts, risotto, pasta, and green vegetables.

We have a very limited supply of Olio Nuovo d’Oliva from Capezzana and Laudemio (Tuscany), and Olio Verde (Sicily), so call us today to secure your bottles.  And remember – Olio Nuovo is a great holiday gift for any foodie on your list!