Olive It or Not
Making olive oil is difficult, one has to put their nose to the grindstone. Traditional farmers take a long pole to shake the tree and collect the fallen olives in plastic sheets or nets. “During the harvest season we work for 24 hours on all days.
Olives need to be crushed, within five to six hours after plucking. Otherwise, the oil quality goes down, due to oxidation and exposure to light,” he explains, adding, “Our olive oil is the result of the unique climate and terroir of this place. We store them in opaque tanks. If it’s too hot it can become rancid, if it’s too cold it can solidify. Room temperature is the best.”
The tour starts with washing and weighing the olives. The leaves and impurities are removed, and then olives are crushed into a mush. A centrifuge machine separates the oil from the solid, cold mush. This is done at lower temperatures, ensuring higher quality extra virgin olive oil. The oil is finally left for sedimentation, carefully stored in the tanks or barrels.
Soon it’s time for the highlight of the tour—tasting the freshly pressed olive oil. Lucero hands over special glue glasses (which hide the colour and cloudiness of the oil) to everyone.
He teaches everyone to let the oil rest on their tongue, slowly breathing in its grassy scent—important for tasting the subtle flavour of olives. “We sell almost 90 per cent of our production directly to visitors avoiding long supply chains,” he says.
From olives to oil, at each step every byproduct is used. The leaves are used to feed goats, ground olive pits are turned into biomass pellets for fires, and the excess water is pumped to irrigate the tree—ensuring nothing goes to waste, something Lucero is proud of. Shipped across the world, each bottle of Lucero’s olive oil carries a hint of Spain’s warm Andalusian sun, and the patience of its dedicated farmers.
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