How Cold-Pressed Olive Oil Is Made
It is the most delicate journey of carrying that fresh, fruity aroma on the olive branch and all the health-promoting polyphenols straight to the bottle without any loss.
The Golden Rule is Temperature:
Throughout all processes, the temperature of the olive paste is strictly kept below 27°C (80.6°F). If the temperature rises, more oil is extracted, but the olive’s unique aroma, vitamins, and antioxidants are lost.
1. Harvesting and Sorting (Early Harvest)
Olives are hand-picked or harvested using gentle methods while they are still green (during October and November). Fallen olives with high acidity are excluded from the process. The harvested olives are swiftly transported to the milling facility and cleared of foreign matter such as leaves and twigs.
2. Preparation (Washing and Cleaning)
The sorted olives are washed in pressurized water units to completely remove dust, dirt, and mud. Great care is taken to ensure no water remains on the olives in order to preserve the quality of the oil.
3. Processing (Crushing and Grinding)
The cleaned olives, along with their pits, are crushed in modern metal crushers to be turned into a paste. Crushing the pits helps transfer the natural antioxidants within them into the oil.
4. The Critical Stage (Malaxation / Kneading)
The resulting olive paste is gently kneaded in machines called malaxers. During this process, which takes about 20 to 40 minutes, microscopic oil droplets merge. Keeping the paste temperature below 27°C is strictly controlled at this stage.
5. Separation (Extracting the Oil / Decanter)
The kneaded paste is sent to a high-speed centrifugal system (decanter). Thanks to centrifugal force, the oil is physically separated from the olive pomace (sanson) and vegetable water. Absolutely no chemical solvents are used.
6. The Final Touch (Final Separation and Filtration)
The oil coming out of the decanter is passed through a vertical separator to be completely cleared of any remaining micro water droplets. The resulting brilliant oil is filtered through paper filters if desired and made ready for bottling.