The fresh extra virgin olive oil delivers a wonderful flavor, fine aroma and of course, all its legendary health benefits, many of which have been mentioned on this blog. So, we thought of producing a small article on highlighting the two most important tips when storing olive oil that will ensure that it maintains its freshness, aroma and flavor.

Try avoid Light, Air and Heat

The first and most important aspect to consider when storing olive oil, is avoid the heat, light and air. When olive oil is exposed to those elements, its valuable nutrients will begin to oxidize (in simple words, its acidity will start climbing) and it will start losing its flavors and aromas. So, a good tip when buying extra virgin olive oil, is to look for those packaged in dark, opaque or even tinted glass bottles.  In case, your bottle doesn’t match this criterion, then do the simple solution. Try pouring it into a clean used red wine bottle. It will most probably do the job. On the contrary, always avoid storing olive oil in plastic bottles or containers, since your olive oil may drain harmful substances out of the plastic packaging.

When storing it, try using a kitchen cabinet or another cool, dark location such as a basement or even a wine cellar, if you have available, at your place. A good idea, it to keep a small container of extra virgin olive oil within your cooking reach, and the rest of your olive oil, you can store it away to avoid repeated exposure to heat and  air. 

Tips to increase storage time

Extra Virgin olive oil has a life span of around two years, so it should be consumed within this period.  If you store it for a longer period, then the flavors and the aroma will start deteriorating and the nutrients included will start to degrade, as well. Producers say that for every month that your extra virgin olive oil ages, its acidity increases, as a result of oxidization (air gets in the bottle, probably heat has effects on it, as well, etc). 

The good news, though, are that Extra virgin olive oils lasts longer than other grades (virgin olive oil, pomace olive oil) or vegetable oils, because of their lower acidities (tip: so keep in mind, to always look at the levels of acidity an extra virgin olive oil has, if you are going to use it for long time). 

The recipe serves 4 people, and you will be needing the following ingredients:

• 2 large sweet potatoes, washed, peeled, and diced (4 cups diced)
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 4-5 large sage leaves, thinly sliced, or to your taste
• 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
• 7-8 cranks of freshly ground black pepper
• 1-2 teaspoons quality extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling

The execution (as Susan describes it, on her blog) 

Place diced potatoes in cold water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook until tender when pierced with a fork. Drain immediately.

 

Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add sliced onions and brown sugar; stir occasionally, until the onions caramelize and turn a deep golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.

 

In a small skillet over medium heat, add remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add sliced sage leaves and saute until lightly crisp. Remove from heat.

 

Using a hand-held potato masher or an electric mixer, mash potatoes to desired consistency. Add the caramelized onions and the crisp sage leaves in olive oil to the potatoes. Season with coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir until well blended. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt before serving.

More specifically, after a 2 years' research, the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism found that, Osteocalcin, a protein found in the bone and is involved in its mineralization, increased with the consumption of olive oil.

Previous researches and reports had concluded on the same findings, but were mostly experimental.

Read more, about the new findings on Elena' article:

The International Olive Oil Council posted a great article about the important role that Olive Oil holds during the pregnancy and childhood.

So instead of posting,  a summary of the those thought, we took the liberty of re-posting the whole article. We hope our lovable IOC won't mind!

" … Olive oil plays a key role in foetal development during pregnancy and a shortage may have pernicious effects on the baby's subsequent development.

It has been demonstrated that the post-natal development of babies of mothers who consumed olive oil when pregnant is better in terms of height, weight, behaviour and psychomotor reflexes.

The foetus needs vitamin E to grow. The newborn baby also needs a store of vitamin E to fight against the oxidative stress caused on entering an oxygen atmosphere. Although not very abundant in olive oil, it is present in sufficient quantity thanks to the resistance of olive oil to oxidation.

So, both the amount and the type of food consumed in the diet during pregnancy play a key part in the metabolic adaptations that occur in the mother and in her functional relationship with the foetus.

Olive oil and breast feeding

During labour, the vitamin E in the mother's blood is concentrated in the breast glands and so, during breast feeding, the mother continues to supply vitamin E. It is essential to maintain the levels of this vitamin during breast feeding.

Vitamin E is also recommended for premature and new-born infants with kidney or pancreas failure because of the favourable effect it has on the hepato-biliary system.

But olive oil not only provides enough essential fatty acids for the development of the new-born child; its ratio of linoleic acid to linolenic acid (essential fatty acids) is similar to that of breast milk.

The beneficial effect of oleic acid lasts beyond pregnancy. Besides its documented effectiveness in preventing hypercholesterolaemia and atherosclerosis, which is a process that can begin in childhood, oleic acid also appears to exert a positive influence on growth and bone mineralisation and development during infancy.

Dietary requirements

During pregnancy and breast feeding it is advisable to consume more fat, primarily monounsaturated fat, while reducing saturated fat and cholesterol as far as possible. General dietary guidelines should be followed and calorie intake should be controlled to avoid excessive weight gain.

Under-three-year-olds have different dietary requirements to children over this age. Forty per cent of the energy they consume comes from fat, whether it be in breast milk or any other kind of milk. It is recommended to maintain this dietary pattern and to ensure that energy and nutritional intake cover the developmental requirements of the child. …"

(via International Olive Council)

Here is a list of 10+1 tips, that a serious producer should consider:

1. The olive should be treated as a fruit. The delicate nature of a ripe fruit needs to be protected from pressure, temperature and abrasion. Breakdown of the fruit begins the fermentation and oxidation process creating defective oils. Affirmation of this premise is essential in producing quality oil.

2. Control disease and pests. Any pest that directly attacks the fruit must be controlled to prevent fruit decay.

3. Harvest and transport fruit with care and separate ground fruits. Do not compromise the integrity of the fruit. Limit the depth of containers to reduce pressure on the fruit. Ground fruit is second class fruit and should be kept separate from the fruit.

4. Classify, separate and process different classes of fruit separately. It is well known that different fruit qualities will produce different qualities of oil. Olive fruit should be separate at the processing facility by ground and tree fruit as well as variety fruit condition, ripeness or other sanitary condition. Give priority to the best fruit.

5. Do not store the fruit. Prolonged storage or slow working of the fruit is contrary to the production of quality oil. Oxidation and fermentation occurs in the stored fruit, which can lead to defects and off flavors in the oil.

6. Process the olives quickly and at a moderate temperature. Quality oil comes from fruit that was worked at temperatures below 86oF (30' Celsius). This is important for protection of the aromas and reduction of oxidation. Poor quality fruit worked at higher temperatures can actually reduce certain undesirable characteristics.

7. Sell several grades of oil. There should be a whole line of oils offered for consumption, at different prices, all classified by quality parameters reflecting the source of olives and oils produced.

8. Store the oil with care. Good storage is extremely important and will permit the proper aging and conservation of desirable flavor components. It is fundamental to store oil in clean stainless steel at temperature below 65oF (18' Celsius).

9. Keep everything clean. The failure to maintain cleanliness is major factor in reducing oil quality since olive oil can so easily become contaminated. Odors from the fermentation of waste products can get into oils in the processing plant. Cleanliness is especially important in the olive washing machines where the wash-water needs to be kept clean at all times.

10. Be an olive oil expert. Know just what it takes to produce, harvest, store, and process olives of high quality. Become familiar with the sensory evaluation of olive oil and be able to recognize the major defects that can appear in olive oil.  Educate your friends or the people you are trying to sell to, about the different classes of olive oil, and help them to enjoy this noble food.

10+1… Love what you do. Everything that is produced with love and passion, is doomed to be successful.  :-)

Some of the terms, might sound a bit scientific, but pretty much you will get the idea.

p.s. We know we owe a post, with our publicity adventure. Maybe, we will try to write down some thoughts over it. But, regardless of it, we would have liked to publicly  thank Suzanne. For listening the whole story. 

Gustatory Sensations

Aromatic olfactory Sensations

It was presented Pecha Kucha style, i.e. 20 slides in 20 seconds. Dynamic, fast-paced, and very entertaining!

The moment, the people of Boussias Communications, contacted us for the presentation, we knew we couldn't find a better spokesperson than Vasia Iliopoulou (twitter: @AVIlopoulou), our project manager, the girl behind some very creative innovations we have implemented on Olive Shop.

With a little help from George Vareloglou (twitter: @Vareloglou), probably one of the very few presentation specialists in Greece, Vasia produced an outstanding result, and we believe she totally justified our award.

Pictures of awesomeness, with Vasia and some slifes, follow:

The rise in the use of cooking oils has been provoked by the economic growth of the past two decades which has made oil, once scarce and prohibitively expensive, common and affordable. This has been complemented the modernization of oil production and processing, which has made many seed and vegetable oils cheaper and more abundant. The switch to oil also reflects Chinese ideas of the health properties of foods, as vegetable and seed oils are believed to be healthier than animal fats. The prevalence of oil in Chinese food is even cited as an explanation for why Chinese people are generally quite slim compared to westerners, the logic being that oil makes food slippery and allows it to pass through the system, whereas western foods like bread, cheese and meat, being dry and sticky, remain in the body for longer and are absorbed as fat.

The importance of oil in China is further reflected in the media, with tragic stories of customers in supermarkets being crushed by stampeding crowds when specials are announced on cooking-oils and chilling exposes of toxic ‘recycled oil’, obtained by processing sewage, which is re-branded and sold or used in restaurants. So it is not surprising that olive oil is becoming increasingly popular in China (imports have increased since 2001 by almost 70% each year), as its health benefits and the perception that foreign brands assure a guarantee of quality and authenticity appeal to Chinese consumers.

There is, however, confusion regarding the product; many Chinese are unsure of the significance of ‘extra-virgin’ or ‘pomace’ when it comes to distinguishing oils, or how their uses in cooking vary. This last is especially relevant as whilst more and more middle-class Chinese are eager to buy imported products, they are generally unfamiliar with foreign cooking techniques. So whereas pure olive oil is a good substitute for other processed vegetable and seed oils and suitable to the high temperatures of Chinese cooking, virgin or extra-virgin olive oil is harder to adapt, as the intense heat of wok cooking destroys its flavour and health properties, and Chinese food is rarely garnished with oil after it has been prepared.

Nevertheless the trend is shifting, as the growing internationalism of major urban centres encourages culinary awareness among middle and upper class Chinese. Events like the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2010 Shanghai World Expo have flooded both cities with foreign visitors and companies, many of whom are eager to penetrate the Chinese market. The olive oil industry now receives annual exposure at the ‘Oil China’ trade fair, including awards for best oils and live demonstrations of how to use olive oil in Chinese cooking. And the popularity of Italian restaurants, many of which advertise the use of olive oil on their menus, further encourages Chinese consumption. So, whilst for now olive oil occupies only a tiny fraction of the Chinese edible oils market, with the proper mix of good publicity and adaptation to local gastronomic customs there is enormous potential for expansion.

(via oliveoiltimes.com)

The mission of the e-volution Awards is to reward the most innovative and contemporary practices in e-business. At this year's first event, numerous large-scale or smaller companies from almost all sectors, submitted their entries.

The evaluation was conducted by a prestigious jury, which consisted of experts in the field, university professorts and representatives of relevant stakeholders.

We are extreme happy to have topped the 'Overall Strategy' category, winning the e-volution award, amongst companies we used to (and still do ) admire for their achievements, on their respective fields.

Given this small opportunity, we would like to thank the committee for the recognition, everyone here at OliveShop who worked so hard, and above all, you, who give us the strength to continue setting new, higher standards and targets.

(This, of course, sounded the typical 'thank you speech', but, nonetheless, it means a lot to us, as a newly founded (4 months old) start-up! And yes, we have a lot of surprises for 2012!)

Thank you all. 

Kostis,

OliveShop co-founder