Many local olive oils are highly regarded - and the latest to join this premium list is Olive Pride, a premium extra virgin olive oil produced in the valley of Porterville in the Western Cape. Made from a blend of frantoio, leccino, coratina and mission olives, the oil will be available from retailers countrywide to cater to the needs of food lovers at an affordable price.

Many producers choose to blend different oils to maintain a more consistent product every year, while others offer separate varietals which display differing characteristics with each harvest.

The Frantoio olive is a typical Tuscan varietal, with strong green overtones, Leccino produces an oil with soft, subtle herbaceous flavours, the Coratina produces a rather bitter oil and the Mission olive is more suited to table olive production, and produces a delicate oil which is best consumed within six to nine months. A combination of these oils leads to Olive Pride’s extra virgin olive oil’s aroma and flavour.

The product is manufactured under controlled conditions and is cooled and pressed within hours of picking.

Olive Pride’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil won a silver award at the recent SA Olive competition. It is best suited for dishes served cold and should be consumed as fresh as possible.

The RSP of the 500ml olive oil is between R 49,99 and R 54,99.