Category Archives: Apollo Olive Oil

Gianni Receives 2020 Miller’s Award

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From: California Olive Oil Council

Subject: Congratulations

“We would like to offer you our congratulations following the release of the 2020 California Olive Oil Council’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Packaging Design Competition results! It is with great honor that we acknowledge that you are a recipient of this year’s Millers Award. Your expertise in the craft of milling has contributed to Marciano Estate being the recipient of the Best Blend Award.”

Gianni has worked tirelessly for 15 years perfecting the use of our unique vacuum mill to produce the highest quality olive oils. We are grateful to receive this award for 2020.

Other Awards for 2020:

The Mistral won a Gold at the LA County Fair and a Silver at the California State Fair while the Sierra won a Silver at both competitions.

Our New Oils Are Available Now

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Harvested and milled in December 2019, our new oils are ready to purchase. We had a wonderful year and are really pleased with how the oils turned out. Once again we are offering the Miller’s Favorite which Gianni crafted to create a beautiful Tuscan style oil.

The 2019 Salute will be available when we run out of the 2018 Salute which we have very little left. It is still tasting very nice with a bit of spiciness and bitterness having mellowed just a little over the year.

Harvest is Here!

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Enjoy the pictures from the beginning of this year’s harvest. The harvest is looking great this year which is a vast improvement over the challenges of last year. We will finish harvest in December, we will blend the oils in January, we bottle in February and our new oil comes out in mid February.


The olives entering the mill
A bin of ripe olives.
The olives entering the washer/crusher.
The delicious olive oil exiting the decanter.
Gianni going to compost the left over olive pomace for the olive trees.

Rec

Harvest Festivals

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Upcoming Harvest Festivals 

Autumn is upon us, and we’ll bring our oils to two festivals here in Northern California.  They’re both great chances to have a fun outing, as well as an opportunity to taste our oils and popular balsamic.  The first is next weekend at the locally famous Bishop’s Pumpkin Farm near Sacramento, and the second, a longstanding 2-day Olive Festival is in Fremont two weekends later.  Please come and enjoy the days!

The 5th Annual Golden Autumn Wine Festival combines quality wines, pleasant entertainment, and a soothing country setting.
       Sunday September 22 from 11 to 3:30
       Bishop’s Pumpkin Farm
       12 wineries and 8 specialty vendors (including us)
       Tickets available at http://www.bishopspumpkinfarm.com/ ,all benefits go to Yuba-Sutter-Colusa United Way.

 The 18th Annual Mission Olive Festival is a family event, with a wide variety of foods, live music, entertainment, kids’ activities, beer & wine, and more
       Saturday and Sunday, October 5th & 6th from 10 to 5
       In the old olive grove behind the historic Old Mission San Jose
       Directions and a great description of the event:  https://web.fremontbusiness.com/events/18th-Annual-Olive-Festival-2870/details
       Free admission, presented by the Mission San Jose Chamber of Commerce

How Long Does My Olive Oil Stay Fresh

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A frequent question we get is “How long will your oils last after opening?” The short answer is “Certainly long enough, if you enjoy the oil regularly.” Which, of course, we hope you will!

The more informative answer is “How long any olive oil lasts depends on a number of variables. Surprisingly, the most oxidative influence comes not from air or temperature, but from light. That’s why our oils are in bottles with opaque labels. Also of great importance for retaining freshness is the unusually high levels of antioxidant polyphenols in our oils, due to the unique milling equipment we have. Regarding heat, recent Greek research on EVOO in opaque containers (tin and bag-in-a-box) indicated that at 98°F extra virgin quality can last more than 100 days, and that it lasts about 120 days at 71 degrees after opening. From that, you can rest assured that summer transport temperatures aren’t critical, but keeping the bottles away from kitchen heat and enjoying the raw flavors within 3 months is a good idea.

The Story of our Balsamic Vinegar

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The Apollo Balsamic vinegar is a real one-of-a-kind, artisanal product based on a delicious Late Harvest Riesling made by Diana in 1984, and aged in the winery cellar for the past 35 years. Through a unique process of reduction and acidification, we are able to produce about 600 bottles of Balsamic annually – for a few more years, anyway…   Unlike most balsamics on the market, the Apollo Balsamic has the complex age-carmelized grape sweetness with a hint of oak barrel aging, and just the right amount of vinegar acidity to balance those concentrated flavors.  Like authentic Italian balsamics, the Apollo Balsamic is best used sparingly as a condiment to enrich various dishes – such as fresh strawberries, salad greens, steak, cooked vegetables, or even ice cream.  

Bottles

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As some of you may have already noticed, some of our bottles look a little different lately. Unfortunately, our bottle supplier has unexpectedly run out of stock, and the next production of our distinctive bottles in Italy isn’t scheduled until October. We had to find a different bottle to use in the meantime until our shipment arrives in November. This bottle lacks the beautiful curves, but has the same opaque label and easy pour spout.

Come for a Tour of Apollo’s Orchards and Mill

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This past weekend, we enjoyed hosting a wonderful group in a customized tour of our orchards and

mill, with a little tasting of our Miller’s Favorite oil and our popular Balsamic. It was a wonderful experience to share our values and methods of producing raw, organic, award-winning oils with the highest polyphenol counts you can find. This picture of Gianni explaining the uniqueness of our mill was attached to a ‘thank you’ email sent by one of the tour group. Whenever you or your friends plan to be in our area, please do consider calling Gianni at 530-692-1562 to arrange a tour.

Introducing Miller’s Favorite

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Introducing Miller’s Favorite

This year we introduced a new offering to our Gold Series category called Miller’s Favorite. This oil is a traditional Tuscan oil made from the Frantoio, Leccino, and Moraiolo olives. As the name states this was our favorite oil this year. It is a robust oil with strong pungency and medium bitterness. Its fruity overtones include hints of artichoke, cinnamon, green almond and green tea. Not everybody can taste these overtones but they add a complexity that make this oil particularly satisfying that everybody can enjoy. We made a very small batch of this oil and we will probably run our before December.

One happy customer’s review of the Miller’s Favorite

The best olive oil in America
I’ve sampled countless olive oils from around the world. This and the rest of Apollo’s lineup are the pinnacle of olive oil production. Every attribute about it is perfect. It is green, pungent, and hosts a depth of flavors. It makes the majority of other olive oils taste like seed oil. The only other oil I’ve had that comes close is the oil I sampled from a micro producer in Central Italy using ancient Roman trees. I can say without any reservation that Apollo makes the best olive oil in America.
Gordon B.

Recipe Co

Apollo Receives Award of Excellence

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We’re pleased to share the news we received on March 21, 2019:

Subject: CONGRATULATIONS

“Congratulations Apollo Olive Oil has been awarded The Los Angeles International Extra Virgin Olive Oil Award of Excellence given in honor of our 20th Anniversary Celebration.  This award is given to producers who have achieved excellence in the production of olive oil and have received a Gold Medal Award or Silver Medal Award in 10 or more Los Angeles International Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competitions. 

We are truly grateful to you for your support and want to congratulate you on your dedication and passion to produce high quality oils of outstanding taste, character and complexity.  We are honored to have your oils in the Los Angeles International Competition for ten years and more and have done our best to promote and showcase your oils.  Apollo Olive Oil has received a Silver Medal or better in all 20 of our competitions – we so appreciate your support.”