Really good olive oil is as complex and as versatile as wine, and can transform the simplest of dishes. Lola Sagra is the 12th generation to head up the Nobleza del Sur family-owned farm and mill, near Jaén in the heart of Andalucia's olive country. She is the company's managing director, with a wide portfolio including sales and marketing as well as the production of the firm's award-winning range of extra virgin oils, including one that was named Best Olive Oil of the Year 2021.
Sarah Merrigan, a chef turned olive oil educator and retailer and distributor, brought Sagra to Dublin recently for a series of tutored tastings, and a tapas dinner cooked by Gwen McGrath and Ken Doherty of Assassination Custard.
Eco Day and Eco Night (€21, 500ml) are flagships of the range, being organic early harvest oils, pressed within four hours of being picked. They are also beautifully presented, with gold-embossed painted labels honouring the pollinators, bees and butterflies.
Eco Day is made with Picual olives, which give it notes of banana skin, green apple peel and artichoke, according to Sagra, who suggests using it as a finishing oil with grilled meat and fish, in salads and drizzled over chocolate ice-cream, with a sprinkling of sea salt. This oil was voted best in the world, from an organic farm, at the Flos Olei awards 2021, which Merrigan describes as the Olympics of olive oil competitions.
The Eco Night is made with a blend of olive varieties. “Each year the goal is to make it better than the year before,” says Sagra, who suggests using this fruity, well-balanced oil with herbacious notes on grilled chicken or fish and in salads, “especially a salad of bacalao and oranges”.
Merrigan, whose interest in olive oil was honed when she worked as a chef in Barcelona, sells the Nobleza del Sur olive oils through her online shop, sarahandolive.com, and it is also stocked in independent food stores and delis including The Butler's Pantry, Saltwater Grocery, Ardkeen Stores, Morton's and Ely Wines.
Well preserved
The makers of Folláin preserves have cleverly put together a gift box of six of their relishes and chutneys, specially selected to serve with cheese, and accompanied by Irish cheese and relish pairing suggestions. The caramelised onion relish goes particularly well with Dingle goat's cheese and Wicklow Bán, they say, while their spiced apple jelly is a good match for Bellingham Blue and Extra Mature Coolea. The mixed box of six preserves and a serving spoon, comes in a very smart box and costs €20, plus €7 postage. Worldwide delivery is also available, and you can also assemble four- or six-jar gift boxes, selecting from the entire range.follain.ie.
