The Olive Harvest In Tuscany

Winter is very close and grape and olive harvests are almost completed in Italy.
Now it is time to rest a bit and tell you the amazing story of our olives harvest experience.
We are located in Maremma, the southern part of Tuscany: our country house lies within a working farm estate (27 acres) producing first quality Tuscan extra virgin olive oil.

The olive trees that are all around our house have seen many things and many people as they are much more old than our grandparents. There is a very special atmosphere, the time seems to stop some days, the surroundings are whispering stories about farmers and old traditions from once upon a time.

The olive picking usually starts at the beginning of November and ends in Mid December all around Tuscany depending on atmospheric conditions.
 
Olive harvesting is not an easy work: usually, the entire family, often friends and even seasonal workers are called to help during the harvest. Usually the older people of the area are the only people whit the know how in order to correctly decide when to start picking up these little green enchanted fruits. If you start too early the oil quantity will be modest, if you wait too much the taste will be bitter. This activity is not about science and numbers but about skills and experience.

The olives are picked by hand or with olive harvester shakers, they are stocked in nets and then in baskets that are transported the same day of the picking to the mill (the Frantoio). In order to have the best oil and to avoid fermentation the olives must be squeezed in 1 or 2 days from the picking.
There is an unrepeatable energy that is produced during these long days around, inside and over these beautiful trees. Probably brotherhood is the best term to define this nice atmosphere.

We do send our olives to the Mill (Frantoio) in Scansano, where Mister Osvaldo controls, manages and conducts all the different aspects of the squeezing procedure. First of all the olives are separated from the leaves and are cleaned with water.

Then the cleaned olives are pressed obtaining the Olive Paste as a result. Then this paste is gently mixed in order to help the separation of water from oil molecules.

The next step is extremely important and consists in the extraction of the olive oil: the paste is sent to a centrifuge that separates water from extra virgin oil. After 1 to 2 hours of procedures the “green gold” flows out of the machines and can be finally tasted on a crispy homemade Tuscan bread bruschetta. The only word that describes this moment is happiness.

Do you know want to learn how the olive oil is produced? Have you ever experienced the olive harvest tradition in Tuscany?
Many hands are needed to pick olives! That's why it could become a very interesting experience for you to join us, so contact us if you're coming to Tuscany during next Fall. We can host you in our marvelous villa!

www.scansanocountryhouse.com