April 07, 2022

Lucero Roasted Garlic Oil and More

A bottle of Lucero Roasted Garlic Olive Oil at her desk is shown at Liz's desk.

Available Week of April 11th

I'm delighted to announce that Roasted Garlic, Agrumato Lemon, and Genovese Basil Olive Oils are bottled and will arrive at our distribution center early next week. Here are a few things I'd thought you'd like to know while we wait.

Roasted Garlic Olive Oil

Lucero Roasted Garlic Olive Oil is exactly as described. Fresh California garlic is roasted until it is soft and caramelized, then crushed with late season ripe olives to make this oil. Ripe olives often exhibit a buttery character, thus the combination of these two elements--garlicky and buttery, milled together then extracted for oil--is as delicious as you imagine. 

Lemon Agrumato Olive Oil

Lucero Lemon Agrumato Olive Oil is made from a combination of lemon varieties available when the olives are being crushed. Boxes of them are poured into the mill along with the olives in a technique developed by Sicilian farmers and millers for their local olive and citrus production; a technique later adopted throughout the world for all manner of fruits and herbs. The product's name is in honor of the Sicilian technique. Agrumi means citrus in Italian, so when something is described as agrumato it refers to being "citrusy". This is also why our other flavored oil made from co-milled fresh olives and fresh fruit or herbs are not referred to as agrumato.

Genovese Basil Olive Oil

Lucero Genovese Basil Olive Oil is made from fresh basil and fresh olives. The rich farmland in California's Central Valley produces many varieties of basil. The specific variety used here is called "Genovese", which is the classic large-leaved Italian Sweet Basil known for its heady aroma and flavor. This is the basil variety known to be particularly good for pesto, and it's aptly named for Genoa, home to amazing basil farms in the Ligurian foothills and the birthplace of pesto itself.

What's Next

Ascolano, Picual, and Coratina extra virgin olive oils are right behind the flavored olive oils, and I'll write again with an update in a few days.

Finally, here is a reminder that our three classic balsamic vinegars are already available for purchase:  Traditional Balsamic Vinegar, Rosato Balsamic Vinegar, Bianco Balsamic Vinegar. The three flavored vinegars should be ready in a few weeks.

Thank you for your ongoing support as we introduce each collection!

- Liz

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