About 20 years ago, I got to taste-test olive oils side by side at a specialty shop. The best samples were bright and fruity with a full-bodied peppery finish. Of course, I bought a good bottle on the spot and savored it at home—dipping bread in the oil so I could really taste it, and drizzling it over dishes. Since then, I have kept a bottle of great olive oil on hand at all times.
For everyday cooking, however, I grab whatever mid-range brand is on sale at the grocery store. I don’t think much beyond whether it looks good or is a brand I’ve bought before, and I suspect most of us do the same.
According to Theodora Stephan, an olive oil sommelier, author, and boutique producer with 28 harvests under her belt, it’s important to read the label when buying olive oil. One of the clearest indicators of quality isn’t the price or the packaging; it’s where the olives were grown. That information can tell you a lot about what’s actually in the bottle.
How To Decipher the Label on a Bottle of Olive Oil
In both the U.S. and Canada, brands are only required to disclose where the oil was last processed or packaged, not necessarily where the olives were grown. That means a bottle labeled “Product of Italy” may have simply been bottled there. For example, Stephan points out that Italy regularly imports olive oil from Spain, then relabels and exports it.
Labels such as “blend of EU oils” don’t offer much detail about the oil’s origins, either. While blended oils are common, that doesn’t mean they’re automatically low-quality. The North American Olive Oil Association (NAOOA) notes that producers often blend oils from different countries to achieve a consistent flavor profile.
Still, Stephan says, “When pride of quality is obvious to the producer, we generally want our consumers to have as much information as possible.” When labels are vague, she says, it can signal large-scale production, multiple sourcing regions, and less transparency about what’s inside the bottle.
Read More: Is It Safe to Eat the White Stuff at the Bottom of My Olive Oil Bottle?
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What Olive Oil Experts Look For
Stephan recommends looking for the olive grove’s name and location on the label. A specific region, estate, or producer name signals that someone is willing to stand behind the oil. Next, look for a harvest date. Olive oil degrades over time, and a best-by date alone isn’t enough, since it can be set years into the future regardless of when the oil was produced. A clear harvest date alongside a bottling date tells you far more about freshness.
The NAOOA offers similar guidance, recommending that shoppers look for specific country-of-origin statements, harvest dates, and quality certification seals.
Beyond the label, one of the easiest ways to tell whether you’ve made a good choice is to taste the oil. It should taste bright and fresh, with a peppery finish. If it tastes flat, heavy, or greasy, it may be past its prime.
Smart Olive Oil Buying Tips
Use this easy cheat sheet to evaluate the bottles of olive oil at your grocery store:
Green Flags:
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The harvest date is printed on the bottle
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The bottling date is printed on the bottle
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The estate, farm, or producer name is disclosed
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Dark glass bottle or a tin container—both protect the oil from light
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Certification seals such as PDO or PGI
Consider Before Buying:
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Vague terms like “pure,” “light,” or “premium” with nothing else to back up its quality
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No harvest date on the label
Read the original article on Simply Recipes