Everyone heard of cold extraction or Extra Virgin olive oil, but let us look closer at what it actually means.
Olive oil is received by pressing of the crushed ripened olives. At the first extraction olives give very few oil, that is what makes is so valuable. For a secondary extraction this olive mass is filled with warm water to enhance extraction. So the first extraction is called cold because olives aren’t heated, no chemicals strengthening oil extraction are added. Thus olive oil of the first cold extraction is an absolutely natural product of the highest quality. This oil is perfect for salads and stewing of vegetables on low temperatures.
If you want to check naturality of olive oil, put it in the refrigerator at a temperature of 0 degrees. You will see that oil has dimmed and some deposit was formed. It means that you have bought good natural olive oil. If you see the word “mix” on the label, it means a mix of olive oil and some other vegetable oil, usually sunflower. On such product the exact amount of olive oil is usually not specified, and its contents can be very little.
Color varies from dark gold to light green. Color of oil depends on the stage of maturity of the olives. Lighter oil is made of green olives, dark – of more mature ones.
The best container for olive oil is dark glass. It is necessary to store a bottle in a cool, dark place, having densely corked it. In long term storage olive oil loses its useful properties.