Tag Archives: olive oil facts

Great Southern Groves 2024 Silver Award

How Olive Oil is Judged: From Chemistry to Taste

For anyone passionate about high-quality olive oil, knowing how it is judged can deepen your appreciation for premium quality olive oil. Australia olive oil competitions uphold strict standards by combining scientific analysis with expert tasting. Here’s are the key steps in assessing an olive oil’s quality and what these evaluations mean for both consumers and producers.

Step 1: Chemical Testing

Chemical analysis begins the judging, focusing on four main indicators:

% Free Fatty Acid (FFA): A low FFA suggests good grove and processing practices. For an olive oil to be called ‘Extra Virgin’, is needs to have a FFA% under 0.8%.

Peroxide Value (PV): This measures oxidation levels, giving insights into the oil’s freshness and storage conditions. The maximum peroxide value for an Extra Virgin Olive Oil is 20 with high quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil having a peroxide value below 12.

UV Absorbance: This test helps assess the oil’s preservation state, indicating whether it has started to degrade.

Polyphenol Content: Polyphenols affect both taste and health benefits. High-polyphenol oils offer robust flavours, while lower levels result in milder, delicate oils, categorized as ‘R’ (robust), ‘M’ (medium), or ‘D’ (delicate).

These chemical measures provide a reliable foundation to gauge quality before tasting.

Step 2: Sensory Assessment

Australian olive oil competitions use the Australian Olive Association’s 100-point scoring system. This includes an assessment of the oil’s freshness, aroma, and flavour complexity, balance, and aftertaste.

AROMA being good fruit intensity, complexity & absence of faults.

PALATE including good fruit intensity, the bitterness & pungency, balance and absence of faults

COMPLEXITY balance, including bitterness & pungency.

This judging process gives consumers confidence, knowing the oil’s quality is confirmed scientifically and through expert taste, helping them find the ideal oil for their culinary needs.

Great Southern Groves – Tuscan Style, Extra Virgin Olive Oil and PRIMA Extra Virgin Olive Oil have both won SILVER at the recent, 2024 – WA Olive Awards.

These awards are run annually by Western Australian Olive Association. Judged by world class olive oil judges, overseen by moderator, Isabella Okis.

The judge’s description of our oil:

Tuscan Style Extra Virgin Olive Oil

(In all of our bottles, tins and boxes)

AROMA: Fresh and strong aromas of tomato leaf and thyme.
PALATE: Pleasant creamy palate; grassy, tomato leaf and tomatoes transfer from aromas.
COMPLEXITY: Balanced finish with some persistence.

Tuscan Style Extra Virgin Olive Oil Chemical Analysis:
FFA%: 0.2
Peroxide: 6
Polyphenol: 382

PRIMA Extra Virgin Olive Oil

(Limited release – SOLD OUT)

AROMA: Floral bouquet aromas together with rocket and capsicum.

PALATE: Fruits transferred well with added banana and tomato leaf and herbs with mild bitterness and pungency.

COMPLEXITY: Balanced and complex.

PRIMA Extra Virgin Olive Oil Chemical Analysis:
FFA%: 0.2
Peroxide: 6
Polyphenol: 349

Are you storing your olive oil correctly?

Did you know that Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a fruit juice! As olives grow on trees, they are classified as a fruit. So technically the liquid you squeeze out of them is a juice.

Unlike other fruit juices, olive oil is shelf stable and doesn’t need to be kept in the fridge. However, like most fruit juices, it doesn’t improve with age. The Best Before date on our Extra Virgin Olive Oil is 2 years from harvest date, the closer you consume it to pressing, the healthier it is for you.

Oxygen, heat and light are the three main enemies of olive oil. So, to combat these…

Keep the lid on tight.

Keep it away from any sources of heat.

Keep it in the dark.

What about keeping a bottle on the kitchen bench? Two things to consider are the type of bottle and where you keep it. 

A thick, dark glass or ceramic, 500ml bottle or smaller is perfect for keeping your oil fresh.  Our decorative bottles are designed for this purpose. We chose them as they have particularly thick and dark glass, serving as a protection for the olive oil. If you are keeping the bottle on your kitchen bench, the location is also important.  Near the stove is handy however, the heat can cause your olive oil to deteriorate quickly both in flavour and nutritional value.  You can certainly store the bottle stove-side, just be aware of the length of time it takes you to empty the bottle. If you use only a small amount over a week, then consider only filling the bottle each week to the amount you use. Also remember to wash out your bottle each time you purchase a new 3L tin or every two to three months.

Buying olive oil in bulk like the 3L tin and 15L box? Decant the oil into your gorgeous bottle on the kitchen bench and then pop the bulk container back into the cupboard, in the dark. Please make sure the lid is replaced tightly back on your tin.  Ideally you want to use the olive oil in your 3L tin within 6 months of opening. As for our new 15L Bag in Box… these are perfect for storing large quantities of olive oil for longer periods of time as they eliminate light and oxygen exposure.