Production of Oil

In the production of the oil the absolute protagonist is the "trapetum"; it consists of a huge stone basin with two round millstones connected to a vertical axis. The olive paste obtained from the crushing of the olives is compressed to freely give the liquid part, in other words, the mixing of oil and water contained in the olive. Leaving the liquid to settle for a few hours, the oil, being lighter than water, races to the surface.

This way it will be easier to separate with special tools. The modern technology of today has completely changed the old physiognomy of the old "trappeto" system activated from the beginning of the last century by the animal energy or even human: actually the use of hydropower and the centrifuge systems allow fast and automated processes.

It is good to highlight that in the various separation phases of the oil from the fruit, foreign substances are never added to the olives.

Commercial Characteristics of the Oil

If the Apulian olive oil has been forever appreciated for its goodness, taste and authenticity, it is not yet fairly valued commercially, in Italy and abroad: a good part of our Apulian olive oil is bottled and valued in the central-northern part of Italy, where important and prestigious oil production firms are located. Up to now the denomination that was usually written on the label was complicated and at times deceiving. The oil quality, in other words, was determined solemnly by the acidity degree (grade) of the product, without any particularly detailed description of the content of the bottle. Finally a recent rule of the community has reduced the number of the quality categories with the introduction of the organolectic evaluation of the quality characteristics.