Oil 2010

sofi Gold Winner 2010
Outstanding Oil

Manicaretti Italian Food Imports was founded in 1988 by Rolando Ruiz Beramendi, then a student at UC Davis, who had spent years in Italy. He missed foods from that part of the world so much that he started importing oils, vinegars and other products. Most of Manicaretti’s offerings are sourced from family-run businesses, including this year’s sofi™ Gold Winner, Olio Verde Extra Virgin Lemon, which is created at an estate in southern Sicily run by the Becchina family.

The family-run business has more than 3,000 olive trees grown with 700 ancient lemon trees. Every year, at the end of a harvest, the Becchinas pressed lemon and olives together to clean the machines rather than using chemicals—an Italian tradition that started because lemon trees are so prevalent amongst olive trees. In 2007 Gabriella Becchina, co-owner, decided the result was so good that she would bottle and sell it.

“They juice and zest the lemons and then mix that in with the olive paste,” explains Brooke Thornton, marketing manager at Manicaretti. “Other olive oils use whole fruit which can be a little bitter. If you compare this one to different pressed (not infused) lemon oils, you’ll find it’s very olive-y with just a hint of lemon.”

Thornton says the oil is versatile enough to be used in a lemon olive oil cake, on grilled fish, roasted beets or a salad, but notes that it’s worth making something special with it. “Because it’s pressed together and not infused, you get a completely different depth of flavor,” she says. “It’s a bit pricier so use it on something where the flavor really comes through.”  —Debra Moss

More About the Product

More than 700 lemon trees are grown among 3,000 olive trees at Olio Verde. Nocellara del Belice olives blend with organic Sicilian lemon zest to create an oil with a deep flavor and aromatic richness. Use on grilled fish or roasted vegetables. 

Suggested retail price: $28/13.5-ounce bottle

Website: manicaretti.com

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