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LETTER FROM TUSCANY The Olive Harvest
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THE 'BUONGUSTAIO' or true gourmet knows that every region of Italy has one or more of its own specialities: it could be a wine or a liquer, perhaps a prosciutto or salami, maybe certain cheeses or sweets. Some regions boast a variety of special products. One such is our own area - the southern part of the Province of Siena. But let's just talk about our olive oil. The small 'comune' or council area of Trequanda, which includes the villages of Petroio and Castelmuzio, specializes in extra-virgin olive oil. Nearby Pienza, only 10 kms away from us, is world-famous for its Pecorino cheese, product of sheep which graze on local herb-scented meadows. Trequanda has a different set of advantages: good aspect to the sun; a high altitude which discourages pests without the need for damaging insecticides; a timeless tradition of planting just the right mix of trees to produce that delightfully clean, sharp taste. Another element is the human factor: olives are still hand-harvested with each tree in turn surrounded by a number of pickers up various ladders or working from the ground (maybe the trees enjoy all the laughter and teasing that goes on?). There is also a choice of small family-run crushers (frantoio) so olives are pressed while still very fresh without heating or forcing. The smell of newly-crushed olives is intoxicating and you are able to taste your own oil immediately on bread toasted above a small fire in the corner – a proud moment. Again there is so much competitive laughter and joking in the frantoio about who has the best yield, the best tasting oil. Last year Ugo went to pick olives in the groves of a Swiss friend who has many more trees than us. And many more olives. His trees had escaped an Easter cold snap during flowering which had left ours bare. A drought or a freeze can be devastating. In 1985 a warm Spring day was followed by a night of 25 degrees Centigrade below zero. 75% of the olive trees in Tuscany were wiped out in a single night! Many families' fortunes went with them. In our area most of the pickers are paid in olive oil, so if we pick one hundred kilos of olives we get 7 kilos of extra-virgin olive oil as a wage. Ugo managed to pick enough for our household use. We used our oil sparingly last year, only on salads and on raw foods. When we were kids our grandma used to push a huge spoonful of olive oil down our throats accompanied by the magic formula : "It's good for you!". This year we had more olives to pick than ever before. Well, the trees were rested and we've learnt how to care for them. The result was excellent: from a hundred kilos of olives the press extracted 19.50 kilos of extra-virgin oil. For us it was incredible, especially considering that our neighbours were extracting 10, 13 or maximum 15 kilos. It was hard not to boast. Not the done thing! But then most neighbours have about 2000 olive trees, which means that they have to begin picking very early in the season, October, therefore the olives are still green not full of juices as the olives picked at a later dates such as in November and December. |
Our groves have a variety of olives - Frantoiano, Pendolino, Leccino, Moraiolo, Olivastra among others. Each farmer has a combination of different trees so the result is that every oil is slightly different from others, though this difference also depends on the time of picking: an early picking produces an oil which is greener and more nutty in taste, a later picking gives an oil which is more bland and yellow. So I would say that there is no oil better than another although the taste of an unprocessed extra-virgin oil has to be the winner. This year we had a multicultural team of young pickers from Australia, South America, the States and ourselves. Lovely young people who in a way become like sons and daughters. Brian from Chicago reminded us of our son Brian Marco - the same dreamy look, the mannerisms, the grunting. He had postponed his departure several times and Ugo realized that maybe he was trying to postpone commitments to life and his family, so one day just had to tell that the time had come for him to go. We have a book where guest workers leave their addresses and contact numbers. In it Brian wrote, "Can't thank you enough for the hospitality and opportunity, truly the experience of my life. You opened your home, your refrigerator and wine-cellar to me, but more importantly you gave me a better understanding of so much. Tuscany, good food, good work, inter-relations (both friends and significant others) and the finer things of life." This year each helper got a present of extra-virgin oil. The bottles were lovingly placed in their rucksacks before going along on a trip around the world. We will always remember these young ones with great pleasure and affection. Ugo & Barbara |
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