I've been anxious to read an article due out in this September’s issue of Cook’s Illustrated. A colleague of mine who was surfing the Internet last night found an electronic version of the piece: It details a blind tasting of California extra virgin olive oils the magazine’s staff conducted earlier this year.
I already know the results. Food guru Jack Bishop of Cook’s Illustrated announced on NBC’s Weekend Todayshow earlier this month our Arbequina extra virgin olive oil was the best California EVOO among the 10 sampled.
We were told the details of the tasting would emerge in the September issue of Cook’s Illustrated. Now that the article is on my screen, I can tell you what the magazine said about our Arbequina: “This extra-virgin oil, made from Arbequina olives, won raves for its fresh, sweet, fruity flavor and pleasing hint of bitterness.”
The article also praised the quality of California extra virgin olive oils in general versus their European counterparts: “The California growers—particularly the folks behind our favorite, relatively affordable oil—have clearly struck something promising.”
To use a term the pros use when tasting olive oil, I’ll “slurp” to that.
Bon appétit,
Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing