A Bright Moment In Our Day!

Yesterday we had a special visitor to our olive farm! Patty Darragh, Executive Director of the California Olive Oil Council, was passing thru on her way back to Berkeley, and stopped to say "hi."

 She was impressed with our beautiful trees that we purchased from Bruce Golino's Santa Cruz Olive Tree Nursery. The trees in the background were planted in 2007, when they were two years old.

The recent rains have been most welcome. We have much to do in the days ahead, and both of us look forward to the work and reward in the coming days and weeks.

Give our award winning EVOO a taste, and let us know your comments! We'd love to hear from you.

Savor the oil!

Richard & Myrna

San Miguel Olive Farm

Back to reality!

We hear that the "gold" and "best in show" stickers will be arriving soon! Plaques are being engraved. When they arrive we have a special place on our wall, waiting just for them!

But right now......

Trees need tending.

It was a beautiful day. We grabbed our hoes and gloves and set off for the olive trees. The new trees have no canopy yet, so we need to weed around their base, so the sunlight and water can help them grow to be big!

Today we had some company as we worked.

This is Spaz, our granddaughters' kitten, who is just learning about the great outdoors. He thinks he is tougher than The Golden Girls (Kendal's two chickies that help with keeping the olive trees bug free.)

Next to make an appearance, was a baby rattler. No picture of him today! Because it is still cool out, he was a bit sluggish. That won't last, and we need to be aware as we work outside.

Perhaps we will get some rain this week, which would be great. 

Until next time, keep savoring our award winning EVOO!

Myrna &Richard

P.S.                                                       

 Buy California certified extra virgin olive oil to ensure that you have purchased an authentic, healthy product. Look for the COOC seal when shopping for extra virgin olive oil. The COOC seal is your guarantee of extra virgin olive oil produced in California & means quality and freshness!

Happiness is.....

Winning GOLD & BEST OF SHOW at the annual California Olive Oil Council's (COOC)
olive oil competition, Saturday, March 3, 2012!

This is a huge honor! We know the hard work that goes into each grower's farm, and we appreciate being part of the farming community of olive  growers.

Thank you, for supporting us in our endeavor.

Richard & Myrna

SAVOR THE OIL

Healthy Heart / Happy Valentine's Day!

Today is Valentine's Day, and what better way to celebrate than to enjoy some of our San Miguel Olive Oil! EVOO is a proven plus for a healthy heart. Use it often. Continue celebrating with those you love!

You can now order our oil online at our website: www.smoliveoil.com. On the Home Page, click on "Our Olive Oil" and proceed from there. Quantities are limited.

Our late harvest 2011/2012 oil is smooth, fragrant, buttery and delicate. Very much like our award winning 2010 oil.

Healthy Hearts To All

Savor The Oil

Richard & Myrna

A Little of This & A Smidge of That!

As I watch our sheep grazing peacefully, I find myself reflecting about the wonderful year behind us and thinking with excitement what is ahead for the year 2012.

Olive oil competitions, state fairs, olive festivals and our farm being part of the olive growers industry in California.

This past year 2010-2011 we won two silver medals! One International and one Central Coast.  San Miguel Olive Farm produces quality extra virgin olive oil.

Our labels are informative for the consumer. We include acid level, peroxide value and harvest date. The acid level and peroxide value determine whether or not the oil is EVOO (extra virgin olive oil).  As of October of 2011, California legislation has tightened the standards of the labeling of EVOO olive oil. Eventually we hope for truth in all labeling.

The acid level determines the quality. The peroxide value determines shelf life. The harvest date determines freshness of the oil. 

Our acid level (0.02) is extremely lower than the 0.5 standard set by the COOC (California Olive Oil Council). The IOOC (International Olive Oil Council) has a standard of 0.8. Our oil has excellent quality, it smokes at a much higher temperature when used in cooking, and the oil remains stable as it ages. The lower the numbers, the higher the quality.

A low peroxide value (7 mEq/Kg)in our young, fresh oil, suggests a longer shelf life. Both the COOC and IOOC have values of less than 20 mEq/Kg. The lower the number, the longer the shelf life.

Our grassy, herbal, slightly robust EVOO will be available February 2012.

We look forward to your first taste of our late harvest 2011 Tuscan EVOO.

Our supply is limited, so "first come, first served."

Email us at: info@smolivefarm.com

Richard and Myrna 

Savor The Oil

Post Harvest News!

The verdict is in! Our olive oil is once again, award winning quality! We will have a limited quantity available, once the oil has settled and then bottled, in January 2012.

It is indeed extra virgin olive oil, with excellent chemistry in both acidity and peroxide levels.

If you would like to be notified when our oil is ready, please email us at: info@sanmiguelolivefarm.com

We are excited about the growing year ahead.

Richard & Myrna

Harvesting in a Wind Storm!

On the morning of December 1st we awakened to howling wind, and bitter cold.
All bundled up, we headed for the farm. The wind was blowing and the trees were swaying.
Some of the younger trees needed to be restaked and tied, due to the heavy winds.

We began our 2011 harvest, by picking a few olives from one of the new trees.

We instructed Glen, a first time olive picker, how to rake the olives off the tree into a basket.

Glen picked the branches from top to bottom, inside and out!

Blue skies and clusters of olives were seen, as we picked under the tree.

Glen and Richard. One took the top, and the other the bottom. Guess which one took the top!

The bin gets filled slowly, bucket by bucket. It holds about 1000 lbs.

Here are "The Olive Girls," Peeps and Pez," taking care of all the bugs in the grove. They are doing their own harvesting!

Arrived at the mill, only to find out the full bin was too heavy for the fork lift. Transfer in progress!

Mill Time!