Olive Oil is the backbone of everything we cook. And Philip Asquith — a fourth-generation Olive farmer — grows them exclusively for us. His Olive Oil is the stuff of legend.
Phil’s farm in Ojai, California hosts thousands of gnarled, centuries-old trees. All of these Olive trees were grown from cuttings taken from some of the oldest and most renowned Olive groves in Europe. Phil’s family visited generational groves in Tuscany, Provence, and Sicily, taking cuttings from the healthiest, most productive trees and bringing them to California. In many cases, they were centuries old. The result is some truly unique trees, which produce Oils not easily found in this part of the world. They harvest for us a few that are virtually impossible to find in the US, including Columella, Nocellara del Belice, Cailletier, and Lechin de Sevilla.
These trees can’t be harvested with machines because the fruit will bruise. This makes the harvest slower but intentional, and the Olive Oil has a lot of complexity and nuance. During harvest, the Olives are picked by hand and pressed immediately. 2023 was a year of abundant Winter rain, mild Spring winds, and warm Summer sunshine in California. These unique weather patterns produced a lush crop of Olives, and we are proud to offer our Heritage Olive Oil as a celebration of this Fall harvest. It’s made from a special blend of Olives grown in Ojai, California on a fourth-generation family farm.
Each perfect Olive is picked by hand and pressed immediately to ensure critical freshness and rich polyphenol content. We select Olives that produce a vivid green Oil with dynamic, vibrant, peppery notes balanced by softer fruit. We love using our Heritage Extra Virgin Olive Oil for anything in the kitchen from dipping and finishing, to roasting and baking. Its high smoke point makes it super versatile.
Phil likes to tell us that Sicilians use a “cough method” to determine how fresh and high-quality an Oil is. The story goes: when you taste an Olive Oil, it needs to make you cough three times or more. That signifies you have the freshest, best Oil.
We get three coughs — every time.
