Taste and use

That's what makes this Sicilian olive oil so special:

• Taste: The "Cerasuola" olive oil from the 2024 harvest is fruity and similarly spicy and bitter as the olive oil from the Canisterwhich is made from different types of olives. It impresses with its balance. Notes of grass and artichokes are perceived on the nose, with hints of bitter almonds and chicory on the palate.
• Quality features: This "green gold" is single-variety: Only "Cerasuola" olives, which are native to western Sicily, are used. In the 2019 sensory test, it received an excellent score of 7.5, which characterizes a complex and very harmonious oil. The decisive factor for the quality of the olive oil is the time of harvest and the processing of the fruit within 24 hours. First they are cleaned and crushed into olive paste together with the stone. This paste is stirred until the oil comes out. It then goes into the centrifuge, where the pure olive oil is cold-extracted. From there, it is pumped into steel tanks and only bottled when required.
• Use: A perfect olive oil for cold dishes. As this oil has also only been decanted and not filtered, it still contains many healthy suspended particles from the olives. It is better not to heat this fruit content, as otherwise valuable ingredients will be reduced. However, if the suspended particles have settled well in the bottle, it can also be used for sautéing. Once opened, the opened bottle should be consumed within 6 months.

Cultivation and ecology

This is how the olives are grown:

• Cultivation method: Organic farming. The producers of Valdibella grow the three local olive varieties "Nocellara del Belice", "Biancolilla" and "Cerasuola". "Cerasuola" is an old olive variety that always has to be grown together with other varieties because it cannot pollinate itself. The olives are harvested by hand during the day from October until the end of the year. The old olive trees are grown organically together with citrus fruits. We had to adjust the prices again for the 2024 harvest, as the harvest volume fell by around 20-25 percent compared to the previous year. Firstly, fewer and smaller olives could be harvested for two reasons: In April it was windy and cold - many blossoms did not survive. This was followed by a very dry and hot summer, which meant that the olives did not grow well and were much smaller. In addition, due to the lack of rainfall in winter and spring, emergency irrigation with collected rainwater was impossible.
• Producers: Mario Geloso is a member of the Valdibella cooperative. He took over the oil mill from his father Pietro Geloso. To cover his costs, Mario Geloso receives 11 euros per bottle of olive oil (750 ml) from the Valdibella cooperative. A really good olive oil is such a valuable product that it is often referred to as "green gold". Valdibella uses the "Addio Pizzo" label to declare that they do not pay protection money to criminal organizations.

This is how the price is made up

Cultivation & processing CHF 21.56

• Cultivation and harvesting: Mario Geloso
• Processing: Geloso Oil Mill, Cooperativa Valdibella

Transport & logistics CHF 10.92

• Export and logistics: Valdibella, Galliker
• Fees: Customs, réservesuisse
• Quality assurance: SQTS laboratory
• Packaging: Zurich plant
• Shipping: Post

Procurement & distribution CHF 12.03

• Coordination, communication, online market: Crowd Container