Olives Olives Olives

11 Nov

Exciting times down here as the olive harvest is being collected. This is Sophie’s first harvest, Rhona’s fourth. We gathered on a warm early November day to rake and shake the olives off her trees onto nets laid out on the ground below. It’s a companionable process, chatting gently, laughing frequently as the black and green olives rain down. It took a couple of days determined work to gather enough ripe olives to take to the frantoio, the olive mill, to be pressed. 24 hours later and it’s ready to collect and to taste. It is peppery and fresh and so damn good, more than worth the aching muscles. This is the oil we will be using throughout 2021 when we cook for family, friends and clients. Now that’s a really satisfying thought.