Chianti Classico Olive Oil

The Chianti Classico zone in central Tuscany is famous for the exceptional quality of its extra virgin olive oil as well as for its wine. Nearly all the Chianti Classico vineyards cultivate olives in addition to grapes and many sell the olive oil under their own labels. Buying oil from the property or the collective is the safest way to be sure that you are buying the genuine product.

Chianti Classico olive oil is pressed from four principal olive tree varieties, usually in combination: Frantoio, Correggiolo, Moraiolo and Leccino (a minimum of 80%) and other olives cultivated in the zone (a maximum of 20%). The production area coincides with the Chianti Classico wine zone. The maximum permitted acidity of this DOP olive oil is 0.5%, as expressed in oleic acid. The fruit must be picked directly from the tree, storage is limited to a maximum of three days and the fruit must be crushed within 24 hours of consignment to the press (frantoio). The latter must be located in the production zone. In practice, the olives are normally transported to the frantoio and pressed on the day of harvest. After they are washed with water at room temperature, the olives are pressed solely mechanically and the temperature of the olive paste during manipulation must not exceed 28° C.

The Chianti Classico denomination can never be attributed to oils resulting from a mixture with other oils, even extra virgin, that are produced outside the production zone or extracted in the same zone but in preceding years or from batches of olives picked after the date of harvesting stipulated on 31 December of each year. Production of oil cannot exceed 650 kg per hectare in olive groves with a density of 500 trees per hectare. The year of production must be clearly indicated on the label.

More about Tuscan olive oil.