Mister Evo would like to introduce himself

Let’s talk about EVOO. We will do so with passion and commitment, to promote the healthy culture of this incredible product, with the hope of enriching you and of not boring you. We are going to tell the story, past and present, of an Italian excellence for which we are envied all the world over. This tale will give voice to the producers and the farmers, especially whose hard work is the key to making all of this possible. In fact there would be no “scarpetta or bruschetta” to enjoy if it weren’t for them. We have decided not to start from the oil sommeliers, the purists of EVOO, or the blue tasting glasses, but instead to begin with the twisted trunk of an olive tree, from the soil, from the sweat of men who work the land and from home-baked bread doused in olive oil. We’ll have plenty of time to talk about the secrets of oil tasting and the richest fragrances that only an excellent EVOO can give off.

But it is necessary, indeed fundamental, to start with the rough, calloused hands of the strong growers. (Imagine) a grandfather on a wooden ladder, with a wicker basket hanging on one arm, gently combing the branches of an olive tree to reap its fruits. Below a child, his grandson, looks at him with his nose to the sky and starts running here and there to collect the olives which missed the basket and ended up on the ground. He brings a handful to his grandfather. The boy opens his hands and the olives, as if by magic, have turned into a single drop of olive oil. The old man looks at him, smiles happily and says: “Good boy! To waste that, would be a shame!” In fact, back in ancient Greece the Athenian legislator Solon, in the sixth century BC introduced some very strict laws to protect olive trees. Among these was the ban on cutting plants “without just cause”. In some cases the penalty was death.