Last week we had a special visit from Argentina: Walter Carol, the export manager for La Riojana cooperative, along with board members (and farmers) Lorenzo Capece and Pablo Flaim, and newly hired US reps Jose Bertorello and Ricardo Arrambide. But instead of talking about wine, we learned all about their newest product: organic, fair trade olive oil.
Many farmers in La Rioja province grow olives as well as grapes; Lorenzo has ten hectares of each. (A hectare is about 2.7 acres.) In fact, the province is the biggest olive oil producer in Argentina. The co-op has facilities for making the oil and for bottling it. Until now, they have been selling it domestically; it is difficult to export because it usually must be sold in bulk for low prices, which don’t benefit the growers. With encouragement from merchandisers from Weaver Street Market, La Riojana decided to try to sell the oil directly to the co-ops here in the United States.
Riojana olive oil is special for many reasons: not only are the farmers paid a fair wage for their olives, and the communities paid fair-trade premiums for community projects, but the oil has a unique flavor. The flavor profile results from the altitude: the olives are grown at 3000 feet. Most olives in the world are grown at lower altitudes.
Lorenzo shared the history of olive oil in Argentina, a tradition dating back 400 years. The Spanish Jesuit priests who colonized South America brought the olive with them, planting trees, harvesting olives, and producing oil. They were so productive that they began exporting their oil to Spain. This created a conflict with Spanish growers, who wanted to export their own oil to South America. So, the Spanish government sent men to cut down all the South American olive trees.
Thankfully, they missed one, in the town square in the village of Almogasta. (According to the Internet, a woman stood over the small tree with her skirts to hide it.) Thus, there is one 400-year-old olive tree still producing olives in Argentina. Argentina’s olive trees descended from this tree; it is the parent of the one native olive, the arauco. Most of the trees in La Rioja were planted 100, 70, or 30 years ago; 30 years ago is when production exploded in the province.
We recently received our first shipment of Riojana olive oil. You can find 750 mL bottles of fair trade Riojana organic, extra virgin olive oil in our stores, priced at $12.99 each. Supplies are limited; we expect this product to be a late fall seasonal favorite, and this year’s harvest was smaller than usual. You don’t want to miss it: It has an amazing concentration of flavor, is high-toned with only a hint of spice on the finish and a full unctuous mouthfeel, and has fruity notes that go on for miles.