I love olive oil. It’s great for some dishes, excellent for making salad dressings and tossing with pasta, and it makes a nice dip for bread. When I had the opportunity to try a box offered by The Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club, I jumped at the chance to do so. After all, I’m always looking for ways to make what we eat special. Here’s what I thought.
Disclaimer: I received a trial box from The Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club to review. All opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links. Should you make a purchase, I will receive a small percentage of that purchase at no additional cost to you.
About the Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club
The Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club is a quarterly subscription club where customers receive three bottles of olive oil from around the world. I received the Spring 2019 box to review. Inside the box are the three bottles and a booklet that informs you about what’s going on in the olive oil world, tells the story of each olive oil, shares information about olive oil, and shares new recipes and more.
My box contained:
- Finca Galvez Arbequina Olive Oil, a mild olive oil from Jaén, Andalucía, Spain
- Cladium, Finca Aroden España Hojiblanca Olive Oil, a medium olive oil from Priego de Córdoba, Andalucía, Spain, and
- Castillo de Canena, Selección Especial Picual Olive Oil, a bold olive oil from Jaén, Andalucía, Spain.
The idea is that each bottle contains about a month’s worth of olive oil.
The booklet contained the information about the spring harvest in Spain, really detailed stories and tasting notes about each oil, information about olive oil and health, the following Spanish and Mediterranean recipes:
- Scrambled Eggs with Sumac and Pine Nuts
- Escalivada
- Lentil and Chorizo Soup
- Spanish Cod with Celery Salsa Verde
- Chicken Thighs with Romesco Sauce
- Garlic Shrimp
- Beef Tenderloin Tips in Garlic Sauce
- Monkfish with Tomato Garlic Sauce
- Lamb Tagine with Olives and Lemon
- Manchego and Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes
- Radicchio Grilled with Olive Paste and Anchovies
- Roasted Asparagus with Marcona Almonds and Manchego, and
- Chocolate Mousse with Olive Oil and Sea Salt
The last page of the booklet has testimonials from club member sand tips on how to host an olive oil tasting party.
The Olive Oil Tasting
For the olive oil tasting, I used these CUTE little plates we got from a thrift store at some point in our thrifting journey. I picked them up for particularly this purpose – dipping bread into olive oil (and balsamic vinegar). This was their maiden voyage. I cut up some rosemary sourdough bread I had on hand from Whole Foods and tasted a piece to focus on its flavors so I could then discern the olive oil flavors from there. I poured about a tablespoon of olive oil into each dish.
Finca Gálvez Arbequina Mild Olive Oil
I started with the most mild olive oil first. That was the Finca Gálvez olive oil from Jaén, Andalucía. The tasting notes describe the producers mill and give a history. I think it’s great that you can get to know who made the oil you get in this subscription box. The color was a nice, light green, and it smelled grassy, almost like hay. The tasting notes say “…this oil is very vegetal on the nose, teasing with whiffs of grassiness, sweet baby greens, and golden apple.
This olive oil had a nutty flavor to me, which seems right on with the tasting notes as well. Almost like walnuts. It was very smooth – and thick. It coated my tongue nicely, and there was a bit of spice at the very end. It was stronger than the standard olive oil we get at the store, and that was very welcome. Overall I really liked it. It would go well with pretty much anything you would use olive oil for – including baked desserts.
Cladium, Finca Aroden España Hojiblanca Medium Olive Oil
This olive oil was a little darker in color than the first, as you can see here. Finca Aroden is in Priego de Córdoa, Andalucía. The tasting notes tell the tale of jubilation in their office when they learned their olive oil was selected for inclusion in the subscription box. Cladium is their super-premium oil.
This olive oil was rich and spicy with some bitterness at the finish. I liked it, and definitely think it would be a good oil to accompany strong foods like paella and whole grain breads. It will want something that will stand up for it, and a dark leafy green salad with the spicier arugula and radicchio would be amazing with it.
Castillo de Canena, Selección Especial Picual Bold Olive Oil
This olive oil packs a punch. Castillo de Canena is located in Jaén, Andalucía. (I’m now convinced that I must someday GO to the Andalucía region of Spain.) Castillo de Canena has a lot of holdings, and are a large producer of olive oil. This is definitely an olive oil that is for the foodie.
This olive oil was a perfect match for the rosemary sourdough bread. I almost got more out to enjoy. The oil has a lot of scents of the spring spices – rosemary, fennel, sage. It would be wonderful in a homemade pesto. It had a dark flavor. In fact, the tasting notes recommend drizzling it over dark chocolate ice cream or mousse. It’s good that there’s a mousse recipe in the booklet…if you’ll excuse me…
Information About Subscribing to The Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club
I recommend this club for those who love olive oil. When you sign up for The Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club, you’ll receive a $39 bottle of artisanal olive oil direct from harvest for only $1. There’s no obligation for further purchase. You can choose from two options: The large set is $139 per quarter and gives you three 500-ml olive oils. The small set is $99 per quarter, and gives you three 250ml bottles (this is the set I received for review). While pricy, it’s a good value for the amount of quality olive oil that’s coming from high-quality producers.
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