Introducing Sicilian Gold Certified Organic, Extra Virgin Olive Oil

When Charles Fragapane inherited his family's land near Agrigento, Sicily, he set out to realize his vision of producing fine quality extra virgin olive. The decision was made to produce the olive oil using organic farming methods, so the land had to be cleared an left to purify naturally for a few years before new olive trees could be planted. Only trees grown in this way can be certified organic under the European Unions Organic Farming standard, and after three years the young trees were ready to produce their first harvest.Ê

The fruit from the young olive trees yielded oil with rich herbal and fruit aromatics and flavours, and a pleasantly bitter, peppery finish. It is often said that the purest olive oil is like liquid gold, and so Mr. Fagapane thought the name Sicilian Gold was a good choice for his new company.

Sicilian Gold olive oil is made with the specially selected blend of Biancollila, Nocellara del Belice, Coratina and Cerasuola olives.Ê To achieve the superior quality of olive oil, only unripe olives are used.Ê The unripe olives have a much lower water content than the ripe fruit, and as a result have a more distinctive, intense flavour. The low water content is also important for preventing oxidation of the olives and minimizing the acidity of the oil. Harvesting of the olives usually begins in October, the olives are picked by hand to prevent bruising, and then cold pressed within 24 hours of picking.Ê All this is critical to achieving a maximum acidity of 0.3% in the oil, the hallmark of fine Italian extra virgin olive oil.

The result of this meticulous production method is a pure, unfiltered extra virgin olive oil that is not only rich in flavours and aromas,Ê but also in the valuable nutrients that make olive oil so renowned for its health benefits.

Sicilian Gold tasting notes - bouquet of fresh grass; flavours of artichoke, tomato and green banana; strong peppery finish.

Sicilian Gold Olive Oil is certified organic through the European Unions Organic Farming organization. All of the Sicilian Gold bottles are labeled with the certification and bottling registration numbers in accordance with the EU Organic Farming EC Control System. Further information on the EU Organic Farming system can be found on their website at,Ê http://ec.europ.eu