Autumn is our favourite season on Ramarro Farm. The temperate weather. The clear, still days where the sky appears extra blue when set off by the red and orange of turning leaves. On a clear-skied day in autumn everything shines, everything is hopeful and possible. Perhaps we all feel that way, regardless of whether we live on a farm or in the city. For us, everything feels harder in the rain and the mud which is why we were so grateful for the bright-shiny weather last week as it was harvest time for our olive trees.
We’ve planted over a hundred olive trees, but so far only 10% of them are mature enough to fruit well. The Dandenong Ranges is not a prime olive growing location, too wet, they grow better in northern Victoria where the summers are hotter and drier, but we persist because olive trees have character. Their evergreen foliage appears different in the wet and the dry. When the wind is firm, the silver underside of the leaves is exposed giving the trees another look entirely. Olive groves are a deep signifier of the regions in Italy we’ve grown to love – Tuscany, Puglia, Sardinia – and for us they will always evoke nostalgia for our time spent there.
The thing is, it’s not that easy to get your olives processed into oil if you’re not a commercial producer with your own processing facilities. Ceres in Brunswick does run a community olives-to-oil service, but that’s more for folks with one or two trees. We’re somewhere in the middle, so we need to look further afield. Apulia Grove in Tooleen provide a small-batch olive processing service. Ceilidh and Charlie run a professional outfit with easy online bookings and friendly service, but it does take us 2.5 hours to drive there and once we stay overnight in Heathcote, it’s not exactly the most economical enterprise.
So, why do we do it?
After getting stuck in traffic in the outer eastern suburbs on our way home, we were left wondering. Harvesting the olives is quite fun once you get into it. We have these hand rakes that pull the olives off the trees without stripping the leaves, then we collect them on a tarp placed under the tree and tip the fruit into crates. For quality oil, olives can only be harvested 48 hours in advance, the fresher the better, so there’s time pressure too. This year we harvested about 60kg from our trees and friends of ours pitched in with around 30kg and, after all that time and effort, we got 10 litres of oil between us. And when you can buy great olive oil from Mount Zero and have it delivered to your door, I did begin to wonder if it was worth it.
After dropping our olives off at Apulia Grove, we drove into Heathcote and while we waited for the car to charge, we stopped in at the Heathcote Wine Hub. By this time, it was dark and we knew the wine bar was closing in half an hour, so we were expecting to be admitted begrudgingly and hurried along. To our delight we were greeted warmly by the hosts and made comfortable in the gorgeous, converted church with a glass of local shiraz and a cheese platter. It made our evening. And when we got home and tasted our own oil, we were reminded why we committed to this agrarian lifestyle.
Something special
True olio nuovo, new oil, is something very special. It’s essentially a different product from what you buy in the shops. Even if the oil you buy is marketed as ‘new oil’ it’s still weeks old by the time it gets to you. There’s a reason why, when you drive around Tuscany in the autumn, you see handwritten signs on the roadside advertising olio nuovo. The season is so short and the product is in such high demand locally that a formal marketing campaign is not required. Olio nuovo is bright green not gold. It’s spicy and fresh and peppery. It’s something to be proud of.
For us, the bonus comes when we take that ultra-fresh oil and add it to the vegetables we grow. Sprouting broccoli has just come back into season and honestly, I can feel the deep-green leafiness doing me good as I eat it. You never cook with olio nuovo, it’s for dressing. We keep it simple and boil or steam the broccoli until the stems are tender then douse it on the plate with our fresh olive oil. The warmth of the broccoli enhances the spicy, green aroma of the oil. We always make sure we have some crusty bread on hand for soaking up the leftovers. It’s not the kind of thing you waste.
We’ve only made our own olive oil once before. That year, we tried to hold onto it for as long as possible. To savour it, I suppose. But, actually, olio nuovo is best enjoyed within the first few weeks after harvesting, so this year we’re not holding back. We appreciate the goodness all the more knowing it won’t last, which, after all, is what eating seasonally is all about. One day, when all our trees are fruiting, we’d like to share this special oil with you. We love the idea of hosting an olio nuovo party. Celebrating with a wander through the olive grove then a tasting of this fleeting, magical product.
Until next time … eat well!
Words by Lisa Davis
Lovely read Lisa :)
Olio nuovo