Major Olive Oil Brands Fail Quality Tests

Slashfood:

That premium extra-virgin olive oil you shelled out a little extra for may not be quite as premium as you'd hoped, according to a second study released yesterday by the UC Davis Olive Center and the Australian Oils Research Laboratory.

Read the whole story

Comments

[cyclebear]

11:28 AM on 04/19/2011

Great article and I have known this information for years. I lived in Europe for 17 years, Italy, Spain, France, & Germany among many others and the olive oil that I purchased and used there left me wonting when I picked up the familiar brands in the states. Here, the oil was bland and tasteless compared to those bottles by the same producer that I used when there. My suspicions were raised so I now go to Italian/Greek specialty stores to purchase my favorite oils that you don't find in our typical supermarkets. Only problem is, the 1 liter bottles of the great stuff that I enjoy are around $26 here, whereas a 1.5 liter bottle of the same producer there is around $11. Oh well. To those out there that want a truly quality olive oil with robust flavor, depth of color, and that bite (di fruttatti) that a great oil contains...visit a really good Italian imported grocer (or another Mediterranian grocer), and ask for assitance from the owners, they should definitely be able to guide you to a worthy oil that you'll appreciate. It is true, the olive oil exporters have been sending us their lowest quality oils for decades, it isn't really a big secret. Anyone from America that has spent time in Europe can attest to this. Also, remember to get the aged balsamic vinegar from Modena, don't get it young, it won't be as flavorfull.

[kareemachan]

11:42 AM on 04/21/2011

And the aged balsamic is $$$$... :-(

[BlackYowe]

03:37 AM on 04/18/2011

I have noticed the quality going down in many brands.

[Amalek]

07:39 AM on 04/18/2011

How could you possible use enough olive oil to be able to make that statement?

[violettefemme]

12:17 PM on 04/18/2011

I don't know how you would even question someone on that unless you know their lives. I buy a 32 oz bottle every 3 weeks, sometimes a little sooner or later. I not only cook almost everything with it, from Italian to Chinese, I bake with it as well.

And I do minimal cooking and baking these days, as my family has shrunk, so that is not even a lot for me.

[BlackYowe]

12:56 PM on 04/18/2011

I go through allot of olive oil. I only use olive oil when I cook and I cook for a family and do cooking for a church. I have only used olive oil in my cooking for 30 years. I have suspected for some time they were adding other oils. Its been a different consistency and has a different smell sometimes and also its been different when it dries on my cast iron posts. A cook knows, Amalewk. Why are you cranky are you a olive oil merchant?

[mxytsplyk]

02:03 AM on 04/18/2011

Greek olive oil tastes the best, IMHO, and if you canʻt get greek, then spanish is one runner up thatʻs good.

[Steve the Humanist]

01:18 AM on 04/18/2011

I'm happy with my Whole Foods organic EVOO. No complaints so far. It tastes good on salad and with other dishes I make.

[LiberalBuzz]

11:33 PM on 04/17/2011

I've tried quite a few as I enjoy cooking and I use EVOO almost exclusively when cooking.

The best I found was from, of all places, COSTCO. Their Kirkland brand.

Something that is important to me is taste and I am partial to non blended EVOO. Kirkland's Tuscano is from the same area in Tuscany. What I found with almost every other brand is they use blended olive oil from as many as 6 or so countries.

While blends may be fine, I prefer a single orchard EVOO.

[Jeffer]

12:16 AM on 04/18/2011

I use it, and heartily agree with its quality.

[butchcliff]

08:26 AM on 04/18/2011

If you're cooking with olive oil, should only use pure oil. Smoke factor is better than
virgin or extra

[LiberalBuzz]

12:35 PM on 04/18/2011

I have and I still prefer EVOO.

[delta7777]

09:42 PM on 04/17/2011

.
the need for "extra-virgin" oil is as over-rated as the same purported quality in women.

In practice, later pressings that taste more strongly of the olive may actually be preferable.
.

[Amalek]

07:36 AM on 04/18/2011

Agree.  Saves you a ton of money too.

[violettefemme]

12:19 PM on 04/18/2011

Yep, I agree, especially as EVOO is not really wanting to be heated up much. I do my stir fry, sauteing, etc, with a lower grade, and save EVOO for raw use such as salads, dips, bread dipping, finishing.

[holyghostie]

08:30 PM on 04/17/2011

The California Olive Oil that Costco sells is very good.

[JenniferWest]

03:03 PM on 04/17/2011

Ughhh! My favorite Supermarket brand-Colovito made the list. Guess I'll have to do some research and pick up a new one at my Import store.

[RichardinJax]

09:34 PM on 04/17/2011

Not if you like it. If the Colovito works for you I wouldn't concern myself to much with someone else's take on it.

[spigzone]

01:25 PM on 04/17/2011

I buy pure California EEVO by the gallons (there's a $200 minimum) from The Olive Oil Source, then vacuum seal it into wide mouth quart jars and pop them in the freezer. I keep a quart in the fridge and spoon out as needed. It spreads like butter and melts rapidly for other uses.

The quality is outstanding, the price Costco excellent and it stays fruity fresh the entire time.

They offer a wide choice of single varieties and blends across a price range.

They also sell 'samplers' of various sizes (including a 'roll your own') of their olive oils and balsalmic vinegars. The $200 minimum does not apply to these.

[anytimecowboy]

12:04 PM on 04/17/2011

Thank you HuffPo for turning me onto SlashFood. Love it!

[wm1]

06:53 PM on 04/17/2011

yes, same for me. SlashFood rocks...

[wm1]

09:00 AM on 04/17/2011

You can get California olive oil from a company in San Francisco called Juliet Mae Spices. They will deliver 17 ounces for 15$. It is really excellent! Try everydayoliveoil.com or ju;ietmae.com. Or you can actually phone them and talk to a real person.

[Amalek]

07:38 AM on 04/18/2011

I have difficulty with Indian accents so I prefer to do business online.

[wm1]

09:41 AM on 04/18/2011

Try the Juliet Mae Spices web site, (julietmae.com). First item on left goes to olive oil. They also make great tandori!

[Sarah Mertz]

06:55 AM on 04/17/2011

Damn, guess I won't be buying Pomeian anymore, they seemed to be doing the worst overall in the tests. Here's the full report: http://olivecenter.ucdavis.edu/report%20041211%20final%20reduced.pdf

[frank day]

07:11 PM on 04/16/2011

We buy EVO from Aldi's. Don't know where it originates, but it's not bad.

[BlueZoo]

01:55 PM on 04/16/2011

You get what you pay for! The top five listed here are all offered in buy-one-get-one-free sales in most supermarkets. Good quality olive oils don't have to cost an arm and a leg but they aren't BOGO either!

[dh17]

11:56 AM on 04/16/2011

But anyway buy local as much you can afford to! I keep both types on hand always.