Rancho Azul y Oro ~ Surviving the Dream

The California Olive Oil Council announced the winners of its 2017 Olive Oil Competition ( 2017 COOC Competition Winners ).  We were thrilled to be among the producers who were awarded a silver medal for our 2017 Estate Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Since this is the governing professional organization for olive oil producers in California, they only accept entries that are EVOO, which eliminates any flavored oils.  Once an oil is either co-milled with or infused with anything, it is no longer EVOO. We have entered our EVOO and our flavored oils in additional competitions but were pleased to start off 2017 with this announcement. Congratulations to all of the winners!

Banana-Dark Chocolate Olive-Oil Muffins We were preparing for a tasting of our olive oil today, and as we always do, we create food with our olive oil using recipes that either we create or that we believe will pair well with our oils.  The goal?  To demonstrate how EVOO can be integrated into everyone's daily meals without too much difficulty. On the whole, we were pleased with these muffins, although I will be making a few tweaks in the future, at which time, we'll print up recipe cards, which we always provide with our oils. Here is a picture of the finished product: Banana-Dark Chocolate Olive Oil Muffins Do you have a favorite muffin recipe that you'd like us to try to convert using EVOO?  Let us know!

2016 EVOO We are very pleased to announce that our 2016 olive oil was awarded its extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) certification from the California Olive Oil Council on December 1, 2016.  This year's oil has been identified with strong robust flavors and high astringency, with positive flavor descriptors being identified as artichoke, cinnamon, and green almond.  I know, don't even say it. Receiving our certification is one of the best Christmas presents we could receive and we are off and running, now, for 2017. Happy Holidays to you all!

2016 EVOO Olive harvest began at sunrise on November 5th, 2016 and was our largest harvest.  In order to be certified EVOO, the olives must be picked, sorted, and milled within 24 hours, and then pass a chemical test and then a sensory evaluation in a blind tasting by an expert panel.  Our goal is to get them in and milled within 12 hours. Our olive oil passed its chemical test on November 7th, 2016 and is being prepared to be submitted to the tasting panel for evaluation.  In the meantime, our olio nuovo will be released in the next two weeks, and then the balance of the oil will be allowed to rest and the oil will then be filtered and bottled in January.   This was our largest harvest, and unfortunately, circumstances precluded many family members from participating this year.  Had it not been for the very generous donation of time and effort on the part of our friends, Bing and Karla Seid, we may not have been able to complete this very daunt...

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 ...