EXAU Olive Oil

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If there’s one thing that you need to know about Italian cuisine, above all else, it’s that Extra Virgin Olive Oil – aka EVOO, aka Olio Extravergine di Oliva – is the key to almost any good savory dish. You’d be hard-pressed to find an Italian who isn’t passionate about the benefits of Olive Oil, especially an Italian from the south, where 84% of Italy’s olive oil is produced. But how do you choose a good EVOO? And how do you know if it’s truly Italian?

Enter EXAU Olive Oil, an award-winning Oil Producer from one of Italy’s most important olive oil regions, Calabria.  EXAU is determined to bring Calabria and California together, matching modern American culinary needs with traditional Calabrian craftsmanship. 

EXAU OLIVE OIL

EXAU Olive Oil was founded by a husband and wife team – Giuseppe, a 3rd generation olive oil producer from Calabria, and Skyler, a Californian who swapped architecture for the wine industry, and wine for olive oil. They left behind their jobs in California to return to Giuseppe’s home in Calabria, where his family has been harvesting olives grown along the Ionian Coast and cold-pressing them to make EVOO for a hundred years. Giuseppe wanted to continue his family tradition, and together they determined to introduce Americans to the beauty, quality, and richness of Calabrian EVOO.

Why Calabria?

Of course, Calabria is the home of EXAU because of Giuseppe’s family heritage, but there are reasons outside of tradition that explain why 33% of Italy’s olive oil production happens here. Calabria is perhaps one of Italy’s most untouched regions. The land has been left more or less wild, and that goes for many of the agricultural practices as well. Calabrian plants, and in this case, olive trees, grow without any GMO’s or toxic chemicals like nasty pesticides or fertilizers. Farmers tend to employ traditional methods of cultivating and harvesting food, and that means fruit is juicier, vegetables tastier, and overall a whole lot healthier!

What You Need to Know About Olive Oil

Not all Olive Oils are created equal – in fact, there are 650 olive oil varieties across the globe, with 400 different varieties in Italy alone! Each different varietal will come with different tastes and flavors that impact the final product. It’s not just olive varieties that impact the oil though, but the level of Olive Oil itself. 

The level of an olive oil is determined more or less by when the olives are harvested, and how soon after that they are pressed.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil has an acidity level below 0.8%. Made from olives that are picked from the tree. For the highest quality olive oil the olives should be pressed as quickly as possible. Although the industry isn't 'highly' regulated there are producers like EXAU that operate this way to ensure their products are of the highest standard.  

Virgin Olive Oil has an acidity level between 0.8% - 2%. Made from olives that have fallen from the tree into a net below. The nets are placed on the ground prior to olives falling.

Ordinary Olive Oil has an acidity level between 2% - 3.3%. Made with olives that have fallen off the tree onto the ground. Often called Lampante. It's used quite a bit in Calabria and Puglia.

EXAU Extra Virgin Olive Oil

EXAU stands for Ex Albis Ulivis, which is Latin for ‘white olive’, and was once used to describe young, green olives that were so good they were only allowed to be consumed by nobility. In fact, EXAU harvests their olives early and presses them within 6 hours of being picked, ensuring the highest quality EVOO. EXAU offers a range of different olive oils, all best used for different purposes – from finishing oils to cooking oils.

In Skyler’s interview with Senreve, she recommends EXAU’s Turi for simple, traditional pasta dishes like Spaghetti all’Aglio e Olio and Pasta al Pomodoro. For Spaghetti all’Aglio e Olio, you’d use the Turi as part of the cooking process, while for Pasta al Pomodoro, you’d use Turi (or Lina) as a finishing oil. This means an oil that you use to condire – or season – the dish, adding it at the end to deepen the flavors.

Skyler recommends using the Avus to finish an Italian favorite, Tagliatelle alla Bolognese, and to use the Lina for baking delicious morsels like Olive Oil Brownies.

(Okay guys – break to say, this is making me HUNGRY! What about you?)

One thing is for sure though – EXAU Olive Oil truly deserves its title as one of the Best Olive Oils in the World. There’s a reason that it’s already found in some of the world’s top restaurants, and I’m so excited to make it a regular feature in my own cooking!!

If you want to Eat Like an Italian, or just elevate your cooking, then it’s definitely worth investing in high-quality EVOO. I recommend exploring EXAU’s Olive Oil offerings, or even better, subscribing to one of their Olive Oil Clubs that sees award-winning olive oil be delivered to your door regularly.

Did you enjoy this post, or do you have questions about EXAU or Olive Oil? I’d love to hear from you! Sound off in the comments below.