Rancho Azul y Oro ~ Surviving the Dream

Rancho Azul y Oro's 2015-16 Olive Harvest As we near our 2016 olive harvest, we are often asked, what is olio nuovo and why is there the rush to get that oil? Olio nuovo, simply put, means new oil.  It is literally the oil which was just an olive a week or two before, pressed and bottled.  It is nearly a neon green/gold color and it will be much more grassy, zesty, pungent, and spicy. Customarily, the olives are picked, milled, and returned to the grower in large stainless steel tanks called fustis.  The olive oil will then rest for approximately a month (as will the grower and bottler), and then, the sediment, is filtered out, leaving a brilliantly clear, beautifully finished oil.   The olio nuovo should be enjoyed more quickly than the finished olive oils because it is unfiltered.  The up side of the unfiltered oil is that it is the most fresh and pungent, the down side is that the sediment that is still in the olio nuovo can reduce its shelf li...

As we near our 2016 olive harvest, we are often asked, what is olio nuovo and why is there the rush to get that oil? Olio nuovo, simply put, means new oil.  It is literally the oil which was just an olive a week or two before, pressed and bottled.  It is nearly a neon green/gold color and it will be much more grassy, zesty, pungent, and spicy. Customarily, the olives are picked, milled, and returned to the grower in large stainless steel tanks called fustis.  The olive oil will then rest for approximately a month (as will the grower and bottler), and then, the sediment, is filtered out, leaving a brilliantly clear, beautifully finished oil.   The olio nuovo should be enjoyed more quickly than the finished olive oils because it is unfiltered.  The up side of the unfiltered oil is that it is the most fresh and pungent, the down side is that the sediment that is still in the olio nuovo can reduce its shelf life, unlike the more polished, final version ...

H arvest is in full swing at the rancho.  It seems as if the heat has broken -- except on the days that the rancho worker bees decide to pick.  So, let's recap where we're at currently.  In our last episode, the Petite Sirah was picked, and since then, we made it and it's in the barrel.  The Cab was picked, and it was our largest Cab harvest ever -- and we still lost all of what we call Block 2, which is hilarious, if you actually saw the size of it.  Here are some photos from our 2016 Cabernet Harvest: 2016 Cabernet 2016 Cabernet 2016 Cabernet 2016 Cabernet 2016 Cabernet 2016 Cabernet I know, they're all starting to look the same.  They were so beautiful, the photographer could not resist the urge to photograph nearly every cluster.  As with the 2013 Petite Sirah, the feeling about these particular grapes is that the wine promises amazing things.   So, even though the harvesters have olive harvest ...

H arvest is in full swing at the rancho.  It seems as if the heat has broken -- except on the days that the rancho worker bees decide to pick.  So, let's recap where we're at currently.  In our last episode, the Petite Sirah was picked, and since then, we made it and it's in the barrel.  The Cab was picked, and it was our largest Cab harvest ever -- and we still lost all of what we call Block 2, which is hilarious, if you actually saw the size of it.  Here are some photos from our 2016 Cabernet Harvest: 2016 Cabernet 2016 Cabernet 2016 Cabernet 2016 Cabernet 2016 Cabernet 2016 Cabernet I know, they're all starting to look the same.  They were so beautiful, the photographer could not resist the urge to photograph nearly every cluster.  As with the 2013 Petite Sirah, the feeling about these particular grapes is that the wine promises amazing things.   So, even though the harvesters have olive harvest ...