Bitterness and pungency are part of an extra virgin olive oil’s character. Intensity and aromas vary with the olive variety and the work that takes the fruit from tree to bottle. Learning to recognise them helps you choose your oil and use it thoughtfully in the kitchen.
Bitterness is a taste sensation. Pungency is a sharp, tactile sensation felt in the mouth and especially in the throat. Alongside fruitiness, they are qualities to observe during tasting, revealing different facets of the oil.
Care begins in the olive grove, with healthy olives and the choice of harvest time. It continues through transport and storage, when overheating and fermentation must be avoided, and in the mill through careful control of processing.
Another term you will often hear is yield: how much oil is obtained from a given quantity of olives. Yield varies with variety, harvest time, rainfall and other factors; on its own, it cannot tell us everything about an oil’s quality.
Tasting lets you explore these differences. From the mildest oils to the boldest, every character can find its own pairing at the table.