GASTRONOMY
to produce even more olive oil. She adds
that cultivation techniques, technology and
knowledge are constantly improving. What’s
more, increasing numbers of consumers are
keen to buy organic and premium brands.
Passion for the product
In the Terres de l’Ebre, the traditional
methods continue, but producers are also
trying new approaches. Some are going
organic, and ambitious companies are
applying science to produce award-winning
high quality oils.
Maite, for example, is a woman on a
mission. She and her 87-year-old father grow
fruit and vegetables and they have 3,200
olive trees. This was at the last count – they
are also taking on neglected neighbouring
land and bringing old trees back into
production. As they convert their farm to
organic, Maite is combining her father’s
wisdom with innovative approaches. She’s
studied ley lines and the phases of the moon
along with the commercial prowess of Italian
olive oil producers.
Maite is immensely proud of her oil – the
carefully designed bottle labels tell the
story of the land, she explains, and her next
ambition is to install her very own olive
8 Ebre Connect, Summer 2017
press. “It’s difficult and hard work,” she says.
“But if I didn’t like it I wouldn’t do it.”
At L’Oli del Mar’s headquarters on the
edge of the town of El Perelló, company
founder Jordi Esparza tells us the science
behind creating the best olive oil. His
company harvests olives from farms all over
Baix Ebre – from the sea to the mountains.
It’s all meticulously harvested and
exhaustively quality-controlled. The oil isn’t
bottled until a customer orders it. Until then,
it’s carefully conserved in stainless steel
tanks in a protected atmosphere.
Tasting notes are available for each of L’Oli
del Mar’s single variety oils, some of which
have won awards recently. And that bitter
taste that sometimes hits you at the back of
your throat is good – it’s the mark of a fresh
oil full of health-giving polyphenols. “This is a
positive attribute,” Jordi emphasises.
Maite and Jordi are just two of the olive oil
enthusiasts of the Terres de l’Ebre. There are
many more – from the elderly grandparents
carefully tending their land as they have
done for years, to the ambitious youngsters
who are pursuing new opportunities.
Tradition combined with innovation may
see olive oil remain a Mediterranean staple
for many more centuries to come.
Pa amb tomaquet:
How to enjoy olive oil
like a Catalan
Pa amb tomaquet (bread with
tomato) is famous across
Catalunya. Toast some rustic
bread a little, gently rub a cut
glove of garlic on the rough
surface of the bread, then
squidge on half a tomato. To
finish it off, sprinkle some salt
and add a generous drizzle of the
best Catalan olive oil.