This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Carapelli Olive Oil. All opinions are 100% mine.
Think all olive oil is the same? If your answer is, yes, that's what I thought, too. That is until I was offered the opportunity to do my own taste-test of three distinct olive oils made by Carapelli. You may recognize the Carapelli name. They were the first olive oil producer to promote bottle extra virgin olive oil in Italy and it's ranked #1 there.
Carapelli Olive Oil is the real deal. Their headquarters is located just outside Florence and their olive oil is made solely from the first cold pressing of olives from the finest Mediterranean olive growers.
I started using olive oil years ago when I read about all the health benefits of olive oil vs other types of oil. Of course, the fact it adds so much flavor to foods doesn't hurt either. I use olive oil in salad dressings, for dipping and for adding flavor to the foods I cook out on the grill. I especially love it on grilled asparagus. Yum!
Ironically, though I've tried various brands of olive oil over the years, the last olive oil I purchased a couple of months ago and is currently in my cupboard, is the Carapelli brand. That's the bottle I already had there on the right.
The other three bottles are the ones I received for the taste-test. They came in this neat box.
When I opened the box, here's how it looked inside. The little bowls on the lower right are for dipping. I wouldn't need them for the taste-testing, but the small blue glass was to play an important role.
Have you ever been to a wine tasting? Taste-testing olive oil is similar, but different.
When tasting olive oil, you follow the rule of The Four S's: Swirl, Sniff, Slurp, and Swallow.
For each of the three olive oils I received, I poured about a tablespoon into the special blue glass included in my kit. The glass is blue because as part of the taste-testing process, it isn't necessary to see or note the color of the oil. The color could even influence your opinion, so probably better to disguise it.
There weren't any rules about which oil I should taste first, so I decided to start with the Organic Oil. I'll go ahead and confess now, though they were all good, the Organic olive oil was definitely my favorite of the three.
Carapelli Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Organic
I poured about a tablespoon of the Carapelli Extra Virgin Organic Olive Oil into my blue and glass and swirled it all around.
The swirling action helps release the oil's esters, which are the molecules that contain the aroma. Interesting, huh? I held the glass in the palm of my hand because the warmth of your body helps to release the aroma.
Next I sniffed the oil, inhaling deeply. The Organic oil had a rich, full aroma. In fact, it made my mouth water.
Next, I sipped the oil and while sipping it, I allowed a little bit of air to enter my mouth. That's why the 3rd step is called, "slurp." The slurping action emulsifies the oil and better spreads it throughout your mouth.
The fourth and final step when taste-testing olive oil is to swallow and note or jot down any tastes or sensations. Looking back at the notes I jotted down regarding my impression of the Carapelli Organic olive oil, I noted that it had tasted, "smooth" and "flavorful." I also recorded down that there was no hint of bitterness. I noticed just the slightest bit of a peppery flavor, once I swallowed the oil.
Carapelli Extra Virgin Olive Oil: il Numerato
Carapelli il Numerato tasted very different. To start with, it didn't smell as full-bodied (my terminology) as the organic.
I did find il Numerato to be a bit more intense in flavor and definitely more peppery. I didn't notice the peppery part that much when I first sipped it, but as I swallowed, that's when I noticed it tasted more peppery than the Organic oil.
Carapelli Extra Virgin Olive Oil
The last Carapelli olive oil I tasted was the one that was the same as what I already had in my cupboard.
It was tempting to use the bottle I already had since it was open, but I decided to open the new bottle so everything I was tasting would be from a brand new, previously un-opened bottle.
So, what did I think about the Carapelli Extra Virgin olive oil? I found it just as flavorful as il Numberato and the Organic, but one thing that seemed to stand out was it tasted the most peppery to me of the three. I could really taste and feel the pepper on the back of my throat. If it had been in a salad or on a food, like bread or asparagus, the peppery flavor may not have been as strong.
My Favorite:
All three types of the Carapelli olive oil tasted great, but my favorite of the three I tested was the first one I tried, the Organic.
Coupon for Carapelli Oil:
While checking Carapelli online this evening, I found a $1.00 OFF coupon at www.CarapelliUSA.com.
This was so much fun! Have you ever done a taste-testing of anything other than wine?
See you this evening for Tablescape Thursday!