Picual Olive Oil

Picual olive oil that smells like a vegetable garden

The Picual olive oil from O-Med is the bolder of the two oils from Ácula, pressed from a single variety of early-harvested Picual olives. Spicy, with notes of tomato leaf and green almond, along with artichoke and a hint of pepper. Test winner in the German consumer magazine Stiftung Warentest, issue 02/2016.

Picual olive oil is the spicy counterpart to the mild Arbequina from the same mill in Andalusia. 100% Picual, harvested in the last week of October and pressed the very same day, with an acidity level of 0.1. In 2016, Stiftung Warentest gave it a "very good" rating for its sensory profile and placed it at the top of the field. An oil that makes its presence known rather than hiding.

Tomato leaf, green almond, a hint of pepper

The Picual tastes of tomato leaf and freshly cut grass, with a touch of rosemary. Grassy, spicy, and robust, but never harsh – you will recognize it immediately on a piece of bread, and in a sauce, it stands its ground against garlic and chili without overpowering either.

It is joined by notes of green almond, artichoke, and green walnut, followed by that peppery tingle in the throat that early-harvested olives provide. Stiftung Warentest described it as very well-balanced, noting aromas of freshly cut grass, artichokes, and blossoms. Half a teaspoon is enough to give a soup a whole new direction.

Bitterness and pungency are part of its character; they are not flaws, but the hallmark of early-harvested olives. In this oil, they are perfectly balanced with the fruitiness—none of the three elements dominates the others.

For arugula, the grill, and tomato sauce

The Picual loves anything with a strong character—bitter salads, grilled meats, vegetables with roasted aromas. It pairs perfectly with anything bold, juicy, and hearty.

Drizzled over arugula or radicchio, it adds a second bitter note that only enhances the first. For grilled octopus, lamb chops, or fried eggplant, it should be used raw as a finishing touch, never in a hot pan.

And then there is the tomato. Soup, sauce, salad—Picual and tomato are an old pair because the oil shares the same green notes. A spoonful over durum wheat semolina spaghetti with nothing more than tomato, garlic, and salt showcases this classic pairing in its purest form.

What the juries in Madrid and New York found

Picual is Spain's most common olive variety, and most of what is pressed from it is everyday oil. The reason this one is a test winner lies in the timing of the harvest. Those who pick in October, while the fruit is still green, get significantly less oil from the same quantity of olives—but an oil with real character.

Juan de Dios García bought the small oil mill in Ácula, southwest of Granada, in 2004. Every step reflects how Paula and Juande have since restructured the operation—harvesting is done by hand in the early morning, pressing happens within hours, and storage takes place in oxygen-protected steel tanks.

The Spanish Ministry of Agriculture awarded the Picual the title of best extra virgin olive oil in the "green-bitter fruity" category for the 2016/2017 season and granted it the special "Alimentos de España" award. It took home the Grand First Prize at the International Olive Council’s Mario Solinas Awards in 2017, and third place in 2013.

It also won gold at the New York International Olive Oil Competition in 2013, 2015, and 2016, a first place at Terra Oleum 2014, and in the 2016 edition of Flos Olei, the Picual was ranked among the twenty best oils in the world. Impressive, indeed.

The white bottle with the pink olive tree illustration holds 500 ml. If you prefer things gentle, choose the mild Arbequina from the same mill; both are part of the O-Med collection. And if you would like to taste even more, you will find plenty to choose from in our selection of extra virgin olive oils.