montyw

I second Ira's suggestion on a good aceto balsamico - balsamic vinegar! The very best we had in our lives was in tuscany at a winery - it was aged I believe 25+ years.

We regret that one item we didn't bring back the most - and are having a hard time finding a good balsamico here in the States that is half as good! We expected to get to Modena and so didn't jump on the bottle when we had the chance - there is always next year

Budman

montyw, do you remember where that winery was? Or as a rule, do most wineries that sell Olive Oil, also sell Balsamic Vinegar?

That will kill 2 birds with one stone -- my wife is a BV lover, and I'm an OO lover.

montyw

Budman, we did the winery tour of Castello Verrazzano in Greve. This was a very good tour of their property, celars and included wine tasting, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar at the end. It started at 11:00AM and you need to call ahead.

They offer a tour with tastings at the end for around 15 Euro each, or a tour with a complete lunch and tasting of local products with their wines for 40 Euro each.

The tour was geared towards non wine types and was in english. We enjoyed it very much!

We only regret not buying their wonderful aged balsamic vinegar (I think it was 46 Euro a bottle!)


Also all around Tuscany you will find kiosks with estate wineries selling their wines and oils sometimes on the road side, or in small shops in some of the towns. We bought some olive oil from a store in Castellina in Chianti, and also had some amazing oil at an enoteca in Radda in Chianti.

canuckuphereathome

Hi Budman..If you check out the website
www.oliveoil.chiantionline.com
We had a group of 10 adults and 7 kids and I booked an olive oil "lecture" here. We had a tasting and I've got to tell you, the olive oil was incredible. We schlepped home 6 bottles of the stuff. Were we to order it now to be shipped to Canada, we'd pay 29 euros per bottle. We bought it right there for $9 U.S. a bottle..worth every extra pound to carry it. We savoured every bottle. One thing they told us is what others here have said..you must be very careful that your olive oil is made from Tuscan olives. Many countries send their olives to Tuscany to be bottled and then the Tuscan label is slapped on it. Also the best olive oil is in a bottle with a cork top..not a pour spout.

nonnafelice

I agree on the Kirkland (Costco) olive oil -- it's the best we've found. Has anyone tried the similarly packaged Kirkland balsamic vinegar? I almost bought some the other day, but we use so little vinegar compared to olive oil, that I decided to stick with Trader Joe, where we can buy smaller bottles.

ira

Hi montyw,

>We ....are having a hard time finding a good balsamico here in the States that is half as good! <

Buy the best Balsamic Vinegar you can and reduce it by 2/3 to 1/2 over very low heat or at 2 in the microwave.

Don't let it even simmer.

You will be amazed at the improvement.

Dick

We spent some time with the owner of an olive oil company.

He suggested that olive oil be tasted from a glass..like wine. He said that tasitng it by dipping bread in olive oil does not give you a true sense of the quality/taste.

I appreciate better wines ( and have wine cellar) but I elected to bring back olive oil instead of wine from italy.

Budman

Thanks for all your responses.

I had olives for lunch yesterday. Just how do they get out the pit and replace it with the pimento?

mari5

Several years ago the word from an expert was that the glass bottles let in more light for olive oil,dimishing the quality...so better in the can! HOWEVER, MOST olive oil now is in the bottles....( it probably doesn't make a lot of difference, does it?).
I've heard Spanish olive oil is the "best", and I've bought some Greek olive oil the other day, Majority of the olive oil imported to USA is from Italy isn't it.? AND there are some excellent olive oils made in the States with locally grown olives...(several in Texas).. and California.
There are a LOT of good ones in the USA, but it IS fun to purchase it in Italy if you are going to be in Tuscany. But it DOES add more weight to your suitcase....

Budman

That's contrary to what the FoodSnob said, but who am I to dare agrue with a FoodSnob.

Maybe I'll just empty out one of those 5-litre box wine bladders and transfer the olive oil directly from the vat to the bladder and it can mold nicely into my carry-on.

Peggy_D

The traditional balsamic vinegar is only bottled at 12, 18, and 24 years. Private vinters can bottle anytime, but are not allowed to sell under the "traditional" label. So, if you see a bottle that is "aged 30 years" check the label carefully. Don't be misled, as I was, into thinking that a bottle that says "aged 30 years" is the real stuff. Upon closer examination of the bottle I bought in Florence last year, it says "condimento balsamico"--which, while really, really good, is not true traditional balsamic vinegar. There is a great oils shop on Via San Egidio (just a couple blocks northeast of the Duomo), and the owner will give you a great tasting lesson on aceto balsamico--and not pressure you to buy a thing. If you buy any, remember--this is not vinegar for salads! It is more syrupy and sweet than what we know of here as balamic vinegar--but to me it is the nectar of the gods!

Budman

Peggy, I always thought balamic vinegar was used for salads. Pardon my lack of knowledge. Then, what do you use it for, this sweet and syrupy "nectar of the gods"?

Gretchen

Excellent balsamic can be used as an aperitif. Also good on fruit and as a marinade.

Lorac1127

We bought the aged balsamic at Verrazzano because it was soooo delicious and is only sold in Italy.

Our tour guide told us that it is "heaven on earth" to eat a ripe strawberry with two drops of their balsamic. We are still waiting for really good strawberries this season to crack open the bottle and find out if he was right.

Budman

Found this link when doing a google search on Italian Balsamic Vinegar. Interesting. I'll have to add this to things to do in Tuscany, right behind wine tasting.

http://njnj.essortment.com/italianbalsamic_rnuq.htm

KenMi

Hi All,

Been browsing the threads to see what the word is on olive oil, particularly in Tuscany, this year.

I believe that the weather wasn't very cooperative last year, and so production and quality were down in Tuscany, and of course prices were up.

Perhaps I'm early, but I was wondering how the harvest went for 2004. I will be heading to Tuscany in March, and, as always, planning to pick up olive oil while I am there. (As one of the many items that I bring home.)

And, any thoughts on locations in Florence where I might be able to pick up some good local extra virgin? Depending on our schedule, I am not sure if I will have much time for shopping outside the city.

Finally, here's a quick story which helps to explain how olive oil holds a special place in our family as a result of our visits to Italy. If I do get out of the city, my absolute favorite place to get oil is a small farm / direct sales place located about half way between Poggibonsi and San Gimignano. My daughter and I stumbled upon it while looking for local wines. It was our first trip to Italy and neither of us knew much Italian. And of course, the owner knew no English. But he insisted that we buy his olive oil directly out of a large stainless steel "vat". We tried to get across to him that we had little room for oil. He first tried to get us to buy what looked like a 3 liter can - then showed us other smaller sizes - we finally settled on a wine bottle. It was sooooo gooood that it became our "special occasion" oil, and brought out for our guests to sample (and of course, to hear the story behind it).

Marianna

Thanks for bringing this up, KenMi. The best olive oil I have ever had, other than the delicious oils I had in Italy, was an olive oil which I bought at Homegoods in my area north of Boston, Ma. I bought one bottle and served it on a salad and for dipping at a family Easter dinner. Everyone loved the oil! So, I went back to the store and bought what they had left and later found a few bottles in Marshalls also. This was about 3 years ago and I haven't seen it since then. I do not remember the brand name, but I do remember that the oil was made from the Taggiasca olives of Liguria.

Budman

KenMi, we just returned from Tuscany (September) and purchases some olive oil from a small shop in Montepulciano. We tasted several types, but this "stuff" seemed to be excellent -- we compared it with other types they had for sale.

The olive oil we bought was dated. This is what we were told to look for. The harvest was November/December 2003, and the expiration date was September 2005. Evidently, it's not like wine that gets better with age.

I would recommend you look for a date on your oil. I was told this was very important when buying good olive oil. The press date should be Nov/Dec 2004.

Enjoy your trip!!!

cmt

My favorites are certain very good Sicilian oils. If you get oil that is produced from olives from an identified area (i.e. not olives from anywhere), there should be a date on the bottle. There can be good oils from many countries, including countries that are not huge producers of oil and therefore sell their oils to big oil exporters in another country. What's "best" deonds at last partly on your taste.

cigalechanta

Budman there was an article in the NYTimes in May this year about Italian olive oils. th Berio blends oils from Spain, Greece, Tunisia and a small amount from Italy.The article says that Italy does not grow enough olives to meet the demand. Spain has the largest harvest. We have tried a large tin from there suggested by my favorite chees/olive oil shop and it was excellent. Bertolli also uses foreign olives, but technique in blending is important.