BODY. Top 3 Tips for Olive Oil.

I have been able to participate in two olive oil harvests in Italy and visit olive mills to see how they are pressed and oil extracted. While it is difficult to find the same quality of olive oil in the US compared to Italy, I won’t sugar coat it (that’s why I bring a lot home every year!), below are my top tips for shopping for and keeping olive oil while stateside.

Top 3 Tips When Shopping for olive oil in the US:

- purchase oil that is in a dark glass bottle. Limited light to the oil helps to preserve the polyphenol content. Microplastics in oil from plastic packaging can be a problem due to the solvency of plastic, which have been linked with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimers. Gold standard is a re-sealing cap that prevents any air entering the bottle, but I have never seen this cap in the US.

- look specifically for Extra virgin oil, which means the olives were only pressed once and have a much lower chance of adulteration (added water, chemicals or other additives to increase extraction). If the it is also labeled cold press (28 degrees Celsius), that also helps to preserve nutrients.

- only purchase oil that has 100% origin from the same country. No mix of Greek and Italian oils - that is Italian blasphemy!

Tips For Keeping Olive Oil At Home:

- max time to keep it in your home is 1.5 years from harvest date, otherwise the medicinal value is greatly decreased.

- Keep olive oil away from the stove to avoid heat exposure.

This article has been approved for factual content by a former professional olive oil taster (yes, that is a job!) - grazie, Nico! Come join in an olive tasting with my Italian trip this October 2026 where you learn the complexities of olive oil are just as in-depth as those of wine… there’s a lot to understand (and love) about olives!