A few weeks ago, I was sent some lovely olive oil by the very nice people at Olive Branch. Now it is fair to say that possibly olive oil, not blood, runs in my veins, though any good phlebotomist who has had a fight with my veins may disagree.

I love the smell, the taste, even the feel of it on my skin (don’t wipe it off, rub it in, it is an excellent moisturiser) and when they asked me if I’d like to try some of their oil of course my pretty much instant answer was “Yes please!”

It arrived and I baked some fresh bread to go with it that very same day. All I needed was that bread, a bit of balsamic for a second tasting and that beautiful, greengold elixir.

I had a very indulgent afternoon, let me tell you. Just me, the warm bread and the oil.

Photos, because words cannot do it justice.

The oil is rich and smooth tasting, but this bottle didn’t have the peppery notes that I’ve tasted elsewhere. It was fresh, and green tasting, if that makes any sense, redolent of crushed wet grass. Utterly lovely, and perfect with simple bread. I admit that  did also add some Carluccio’s aged balsamic after the initial tasting, because when you have that, and olive oil of this quality, then it would be foolish not to.

I’ll leave you with words from Olive Branch, telling you all about their beautiful oil.

Our Olive Oil has been produced at a community co-operative in the south of Crete. The co-operative is owned by its members, all of whom are responsible for picking the olives themselves, during the early harvest which takes place around November/December each year. Once the Olives are picked, the Oil is cold pressed within hours to create a fresh and grassy taste.

The Oil is made from the Koroneiki Olive, which is native to Crete and has high natural antioxidant content. The Olive is picked at the stage when the ripening begins as this is when the Olive is packed with vitamins and antioxidants. This creates a superior quality olive oil which is indicated by its exceptionally low acidity level of <0.3%.

Our Olive Oil will take you on a taste journey – starting with a fresh and grassy taste, moving to tomato like notes and ending with a pepper like finish.

http://myolivebranch.co.uk/