Understanding the role of an olive oil sommelier.
We often think of a sommelier as someone who understands wine: how it is made, where it comes from, how to taste it and, ultimately, how to enjoy it with food.
The same principles apply to olive oil.
An olive oil sommelier is someone who has been trained to understand extra virgin olive oil across its journey from olive to table. This includes its origins, olive varieties, cultivation, harvesting and milling, quality, sensory characteristics, storage and culinary use.
But there is an important distinction between an olive oil sommelier and an olive oil taster.
Sommelier vs taster: what's the difference?
An olive oil taster is trained primarily in sensory analysis: assessing an oil through its aroma and flavour to determine its characteristics and identify any defects.
Professional olive oil tasting is a highly structured discipline, with internationally recognised methods developed by the International Olive Council. Tasters are trained to assess oils objectively rather than simply deciding whether they personally like them.
An olive oil sommelier takes this sensory knowledge further. Rather than focusing solely on assessing the oil, a sommelier considers the bigger picture: where the oil comes from, why it tastes the way it does, how its qualities have been influenced by the olive variety and production process, and how it can best be used and enjoyed.
In simple terms:
A taster asks:
What am I experiencing in this oil?
A sommelier asks:
What am I experiencing, why is it there, where has this oil come from, and how can I best share that knowledge?
The two disciplines overlap, and both require a deep understanding of extra virgin olive oil.
Why does this matter?
Extra virgin olive oil is remarkably diverse.
An oil can be delicate and floral, fresh and grassy, intensely green and herbaceous, or robust and peppery. Oils made from different olive varieties, grown in different regions and harvested at different stages of maturity can have entirely different personalities.
Understanding those differences helps us appreciate that there is no single definition of a "good" olive oil based simply on whether it tastes mild or strong. It also helps us make better choices.
Which oil will complement a delicate piece of fish? Which will stand up to grilled vegetables? Which will bring out the sweetness of ripe tomatoes? And what is it about the oil that makes that pairing work?
This is where the sommelier's knowledge becomes particularly useful.
Education is at the heart of Olivetta
One of Olivetta's missions has always been to help people understand extra virgin olive oil: how to taste it, how to use it, where it comes from and what makes one oil different from another.
That is why Karl, our CEO and Founder, undertook professional training with the Olive Oil Times Education Lab to become a certified Olive Oil Sommelier.
The qualification was not simply about adding another credential to Olivetta. It was about having the knowledge and confidence to educate our customers properly, and to answer the questions that naturally arise when you begin to look beyond the bottle.
For us, education is part of the pleasure of olive oil. The more you understand what you are tasting, the more you begin to notice. And the more you notice, the more interesting that bottle of olive oil becomes.
We look forward to tasting with you at Olivetta.
