Why taste your olive oil?

We encourage you to regularly smell and taste your kitchen oils to check its freshness and suitability for consumption and to develop an understanding of the differences between different quality olive oils.

We all know what rancid butter tastes like and discard it as soon as we realise. But many are not yet aware of the difference between fresh olive oil and olive oil that has passed its use-by-date. Many kitchen cupboards are stocked with a range of oils that have been there for years. Oxidised oil has a lower nutritional and anti-oxidant value.

As with wine, there are all manner of qualities and styles of olive oil. Tasting oil is an art form, and takes many years to achieve a high level of proficiency. However, in simplistic terms, there a couple of basic steps in understanding the quality of oil:

• The first is to really understand the freshness of the oil; Inhaling the vapours from a small amount of olive oil in a warm cup, should reveal exciting & fresh characteristics.
• The second is whether or not it is a balanced oil; breath in some air over the oil & notice where the flavors hit the palate. Experience the oil 'au naturale'.

From these two steps you can discover the excitement that comes from tasting the complexities, flavours and delights that a good olive oil can bring to the table.