Savantes Asia Pacific 2012

Tasting the World’s Leading Olive Oils
Melbourne, Australia, 25th - 27th July 2012

In 12 years Extra Virgin Olive Oil Savantes has held over 25 olive oil tasting programmes in many countries – Australia, Italy, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

During this time the three-day programme has evolved into one of the world’s leading independent forums for the commercially important attributes of extra virgin olive oil. Participants in the programme are able to:

Taste the wide range of styles and flavour of extra virgin olive oils from many regions around the world
Taste international award winners from the northern and southern hemispheres
Evaluate your own new season extra virgin olive oil by comparison
Discuss market trends in producing and importing countries
Explore the culinary and health selling points of extra virgin olive oil
Make friends and expand your networks worldwide
Practice your blending skill
Achieve recognition of your own tasting ability and knowledge by becoming an Associate Savante or Member of the Register of Extra Virgin Olive Oil Savantes

Oils at Savantes Melbourne 2012

Participants at Extra Virgin Olive Oil Savantes in Melbourne (July 25th - 27th) will have the opportunity to taste a range of extra virgin olive oils from around the world.

The list below contains some of the oils that will be tasted during the programme - new oils are being added each week. The huge range of oils will enable participants to expand their tasting knowledge, experience and develop their tasting skills. It is also a great opportunity to benchmark your oil against some of the leading oils from around the world (participants are invited to bring an oil for inclusion in the programme).

Extra Virgin Olive Oil Tasted at Savantes Sevilla wins top Award at LA

Olea de Marchia – Ascolana from Azienda del Carmine on the mid-east coast of Italy has won the Marco Mugelli award presented to the Best of the Best on Show at the Los Angeles Extra Virgin Olive Oil Awards.

Best of Class and Gold Medal was also presented to Primo from Frantoi Cutrera in Sicily.

Castelas Organic from Southern France won a Gold Medal at Concours Général in Paris in March.

These oils and other Gold Medal winners at LA listed below were tasted at the Savantes programme held in Seville at the beginning of March. This justifies the claim that the Savantes programme brings together some of the best extra virgin olive oil from around the world.

Savantes Seville 2012 Tastes the Best of the New Season

The range and quality of the new season extra virgin olive oils tasted by the Savantes programme in Sevilla were outstanding.

Participants from North America, Spain and Turkey spent three days refreshing their tasting, blending and descriptive ability with all styles of olive oils. Producers from the main producing countries, Spain, Italy and Greece sent their best oils made from cultivars typical of their regions. Added to these were oils from New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Turkey, Morocco, Portugal and France.

Canadian Olive Oil Enthusiast becomes First Associate Savante

Gabriele Kinsley of The Essential Olive in Cobble Hill in British Columbia has become the first Savante participant to achieve Associate Savante status.

Gabriele and her partner Dave Waddell are Canadians on a quest to bring quality olive oil to Western Canada. They are investigating the feasibility of importing olive oil from small scale organic farmers and marketing through an olive oil tasting business.

They participated in Savantes in Melbourne, Australia, in July 2011 to increase their knowledge of quality olive oil, develop a discerning palate and establish business contacts.

They live in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island on the west coast of Canada.

Gabriele Kinsley (right) and Dave Waddell (far left) taste and discuss olive oils at Savantes Melbourne with Christine Ashcroft (second left) from the Hunter Valley in Australia and Linda Costa (centre) from South Africa

Taste and Flavour

An important element of the Savantes programme is about describing taste and flavour of extra virgin olive oils from all over the world. To do this we need to understand the biological basis and process of tasting.