Tuscan Olive Oil

Following the fall of the Roman Empire, agricultural production and commercialization practically disappeared and the cultivation of olive trees was reduced immensely. During the Middle Ages it was mainly the convents that owned the major olive plantations, before the local communes started to be interested in producing olive oil once again. While Venice and Genoa were fighting over the control of commerce and trade, Florence, which owned no ports, was the ruler of the production and distribution of olive oil. The rules were extremely severe and the commerce of olive oil quickly increased in economic importance since it was necessary for nourishment and soap making; olive oil became an instrument of great economic and political value by the 1300s. In Tuscany, the Medici family encouraged olive cultivation by renting fields on the hills at low prices to each commune of the province of Florence. These fields were meant to be transformed into olive and grape plantations. This is how the typical Tuscan landscape came about.

The types of olives that are mostly cultivated nowadays in Tuscany are: Frantoio, native of Tuscany, this olive has spread throughout the Italian peninsula. Its cultivation is widespread because it produces an extremely fine, sapid, and aromatic olive oil. Moraiolo, Leccino, and Pendolino varietals also make a flavorful olive oil and, differently from the Frantoio varietal, they have longer endurance to temperature and weather conditions.

The use of butter in Tuscan cooking is very rare, having been almost totally replaced by olive oil; often added raw to already cooked dishes, like on roasted beef after having been taken out of the oven, on still smoking steak, on bread soups, and boiled beans. The heat emanated from the food helps the volatile substances of the olive oil to free themselves and give off a delicious fragrance. Try it, and let us know if you enjoy olive oil the Tuscan way!