I knew the package containing the slender silk-screened black bottle was waiting for me as I drove home from the airport, still a bit overwhelmed from the extended Thanksgiving merriment the day before. I have enjoyed dozens of ‘Olio Nuovo’ over the last ten years, but that never seems to diminish my heightened anticipation each year.
After unwrapping and pulling the top, the pungent green aroma wafted out of the bottle, green artichoke, wild arugula, and clipped grass followed by notes of green olive and just a hint of almond, green almond at that. As I began to pour, the opaque green liquid came flowing out, burnished Jade welling from the elegant black glass. I must say, there is nothing quite like the aroma of freshly pressed olive oil, and with this year’s blend of Katz Organic December’s New Oil, Albert Katz may have outdone himself.
As always, I started by slowly sipping an ounce or so. Green artichoke with notes of wild arugula hit my palate as the full-bodied olive butteriness with hints of almond quickly expanded on my lips and tongue. More wild arugula with a smidgen of bitterness and its telltale pepper finish followed while the pleasant spicy/peppery sensation at the back of my throat continued to build as I continued to sip. But, sipping olive oil is really no way to fully enjoy its flavor, so I quickly toasted some rustic bread and liberally drizzled it with the new oil, finishing with a bit of sea salt. Of course, the oil was even more enjoyable, seasoned by the salt and complemented by the toasted bread - this will be my breakfast as long as the bottle lasts. A few hours later I used it to dress a simple omelet of three eggs from pastured hens - here the new oil seemed to act both as a seasoning and as a dressing. Today I used the New Oil to dress a simple bowl of Zolfino beans.
While I thought last year's Katz December's New Oil was something akin to a cross between a green Lake Garda oil and a buttery Ligurian oil, with a bit extra weight this year's organic New Oil demonstrates the growing potential of their Rock Hill Ranch in the Suisun Valley, and Albert’s skill as a blender. I suspect that it is the addition of the Allegra cultivar to this year’s oil that has added even more weight and complexity to the finished blend. If anything, with this year’s blend Albert has left northern Italy completely and has created something akin to a Sicilian Olio Novello, an oil in which green is prominent - without being dominant or overbearing - and harmonious with the flavor and butteriness of olives. Bravo!
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