Olive oil, the “liquid gold” according to Homer, is the protagonist of the Mediterranean diet and is a great nutritional treasure with numerous benefits for human health.  It is the direct product from the pressing of the ripe or semi-ripe fruit of the olive tree, following ancient, tried and tested traditional methods even to this day.

The olive tree and olive oil in history

The wild olive tree first appeared in the Eastern Mediterranean,4,000 years BC, based on the existence of wild vegetation of wild olive as well as the texts of ancient writers and excavation findings. But the first olive cultivation took place in Greece, specifically in Crete, during the prehistoric period.  A prominent Greek linguist and researcher, Anagnostopoulos, argued in 1951, based on the findings of the excavations of Knossos, that the homeland of the olive tree is Crete. This hypothesis is reinforced by the fact that the name of the olive tree is Greek and has been preserved in all languages.

Greek mythology mentions the olive tree often.  A well-known myth claims that it was a gift of the goddess Athena to the inhabitants of the city of Athens, when she quarreled with the god Poseidon, over the naming rights of the still unnamed city. They, as a sign of gratitude, named their city after the goddess and she taught them how to grow olives. The Athenians on their coins depicted Athena with an olive wreath on her helmet and an amphora with oil or an olive branch.

The three Nymphs of Delos, called Oinotropoi, Winemakers were great granddaughters of the god Dionysus.  Their names, Spermo, Oino, Elais, refer to the basic elements of the diet, wheat, wine and oil. They all took the gift from Dionysus to make their respective crop to spring up from the ground wherever they stepped.  Elais was the goddess of olive oil, and beloved by Dionysus. In fact, the god Dionysus gave her the power to turn water into wine and any other liquid into olive oil.

In Ancient Greece the olive held an important place not only in nutrition but also in the economy. It was considered a sacred symbol of life, peace, wisdom, health, strength, fertility, purification, victory, repentance and prosperity.  Frequent representations of the olive, the olive tree, the harvest and the production of olive oil are found in the black and red vessels of antiquity.

Many were the ancient Greek philosophers who studied the properties of olive oil, Anaxagoras, Dioskouridis and Empedocles. Aristotle described how it was cultivated and Plato taught in the shadow of an olive tree.  Hippocrates recommended it as “iama”, medicine, ideal for sixty different uses.  The great legislator Solon enacted laws in order to protect the olive trees, forbidding on the one hand the cutting of a large number of trees from the olive groves of Athens, on the other hand determining the planting distance at nine feet between them.

Athletes rubbed it all over their bodies believing that it would give them strength and luck and warriors anointed the bodies of their dead.  At later times, Christians threw drops of olive oil on the bones of dead saints and martyrs, as it was an emblem of sanctification and purity.

At the Olympic Games that began in 776 BC, the ancient Greeks crowned the winners with “kotino”, a wreath made of olive branches from the same wild olive tree growing in the Altis, the sacred olive grove of Olympia.

At the Panathenaea, the winners were given an amphora full of sacred olive oil by the goddess Athena.

The importance of olive oil was so very great, as in addition to its daily use in food, was used in various other applications, such as tanning, textiles, lighting, perfumery, pharmaceuticals, medicine, but also in various worship ceremonies.

Olive oil in Crete

Today there are about 800 million olive trees around the globe, of which about 95% are grown in the Mediterranean basin which has excellent soil and climatic conditions for olive growth. In Greece the olive is a widely cultivated crop, greater than any other type of fruit tree and occupies an area corresponding to about 15% of the cultivated agricultural land and 75% of the area of ​​tree crops. Crete boasts 30,000,000 fruit bearing trees and the island is Greece’s largest olive oil producer.  The olive tree of Vouves, in the prececture of Chania, is probably the oldest fruit producing olive tree in the world, estimated at around 4000 years of age.

In Minoan Crete the olive tree was an integral part of its culture and economy and is a favorite subject in art. It was a sacred tree which is why it is found in performances, murals, worship scenes, gold rings, seals, stamps and in clay and stone vases. The dead were also accompanied by olive leaves made of gold, a jewel that symbolized immortality.  Olive oil became a dominant product of the Minoan civilization, a symbol of wealth and power.  The large numbers of Linear B tablets found throughout the island document production numbers of olive oil as well exporting records to trading partner regions like Egypt.

The Minoans used stone presses and clay vessels to make excellent quality olive oil, which is not very different from the virgin olive oil produced today.  The Minoans put the molten olive pulp in large ceramic jars topped with water and when the oil had risen to the surface, they strained the water from the bottom.

There are two main olive varieties in Crete today.  The Koroneiki and the Tsounati.  The koroneiki variety olive falls when ripe, on nets laid out under the tree, while the tsounati must be teased off the tree by manual or mechanical means.

Olive oil production

Olive oil is simply the fatty liquid produced by crashing and squeezing the olive.  There is nothing more added to the final product.  It’s quality though is depended on a variety of factors that are tightly controlled by today’s producers, based on millennia of experience and tradition.

The collection of the olive fruit and its conversion into oil is relatively immediate, usually withing 48 hours of harvest and requires minimal use of technological applications.  The prompt process of the olives is an important step on producing high quality olive oil.

At the traditional olive mill, the olives are washed and then crushed in a stone mill turning them into a paste. The paste is transferred into sacks or special baskets, stacked several high on the press, and squeezed until the oil is released.  The oil is collected in containers, infused with water which aids in separating the lighter oil that flows off to another collection container from the small solid particles that may have found their way to the liquid.  As a final step, the oil may be filtered further before it is placed in the storage containers or bottles.

The entire process is natural, unlike oils from seeds or vegetables that require the aid of increased temperature or added chemicals to promote the release of their oil.  This is the essence of the cold pressing process, that only olive oil can be successfully produced.  It is greatly influenced of the relatively mild winter temperatures of Crete that are a perfect factor for the cold pressing process.

Cold-pressed olive oils have very low acidity levels and are distinguished by their smell, color, and taste, which depend on the following factors:

• The location, soil type and weather conditions under which the olive tree is cultivated and grown.
• The variety and ripeness of the olive.
• The season and the way of
• The time lapse from the harvest to the production of the oil and the method of transport to the olive mills.
• The method of olive oil production.
• The storage methods and conditions.

Today, there are still traditional olive presses scattered throughout the island.  Modern olive oil production facilities have replaced the traditional equipment of stone mills and manual presses with modern equipment that do the exact same job without the manual labor.  The process though remains the same.

Olive oil categories and grades

There are several categories and sub-categories of olive oil and each has a corresponding commercial and nutritional value.  The most common are the following:

Virgin Olive Oils:  Olive oil obtained from the olive fruit, exclusively by mechanical methods that do not involve alteration of the olive oil and which have not been processed, except for washing, precipitation, centrifugation and filtration.

Virgin Olive Oils are divided into:

Extra Virgin: acidity (free fatty acid content) from 0.10 to 0.80% expressed as oleic acid. It has excellent taste, aroma and nutritional value.  Suitable for all forms of consumption, cooking, as salad dressing.

Virgin: acidity from 0.81 to 2.0%.  Good taste, suitable for cooking and other uses.

First harvest extra virgin (agourelaio): olive oil, collected with much effort and meticulous timing, it is produced in limited quantities.  In mid to late October, depending on the existing weather conditions, the freshest and strongest olives, unripe and green, are handpicked directly from the tree and transported the same day to the olive mill.  The oil is immediately analyzed to confirm its quality characteristics. The oil of the first, unripe fruit of the first crop is special and, in fact, according to the International Olive Oil Council, its basic organoleptic evaluation criteria focus on three main characteristics: Fruity, bitter and spicy. In short, it is an oil with an intense olive flavor and aroma, which make it unique.

Refined Olive Oil:  Olive oil that has been re-esterified with solvents, deodorized, discolored, vacuum-treated or mixed with other oils (such as seed oil), with oleic acidity level up to 0.50%.  Suitable for frying but poor in nutritional value.   Pure or Genuine Olive Oil is a blend of virgin and refined olive oil.

Olive Oil:  Olive oil consisting of a blend of refined and virgin olive oils with free acidity levels of up to 1.50%.  Suitable for cooking and other household uses.

Kernel oil:   olive oil separated by chemical methods from the kernel, the oily placenta that remains as a by-product of the olive mills of, consequently from the residues of all the components of the olive fruit.  It has high acidity and is not directly edible.

For maximum flavor and nutritional value, the obvious choices are the Extra virgin and First harvest extra virgin olive oils.

Storage

Olive oil can be easily stored and will not lose its nutrition for at least a year, unless exposed to light or stored in an overly hot place.  Properly stored olive oil lasts from 12 to 18 months, as long as it takes for the olive tree to bear fruit and for the harvest to take place again.  You can still find out if the olive oil is spoiled or not by tasting it and if you are satisfied with its taste and aroma you can still use it.

During cooking, extra virgin olive oil remains stable up to about 210 degrees C, 410 F.

Nutrition

It is rich in sterols (mainly β-sitosterol) and fatty acids, mainly oleic acid (omega-9), linolenic acid (omega-3) and linoleic acid (omega-6). Typical are their content of antioxidants, such as fat-soluble vitamins A, B, C, D, and E,  carotenoids (β-carotene, xanthophyll), phenols and polyphenols.

Some of the benefits to our health include:

• Protects the cardiovascular system, helps prevent strokes and lowers blood pressure
• Due to the rich monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats it contains, it reduces the risk of depression.
• Helps maintain healthy cholesterol levels and reduces the risk of diabetes.
• Protects against Alzheimer’s disease and related neurodegenerative diseases due to the oleocanthal of natural phenol contained in extra-virgin olive oil.
• Helps prevent acute pancreatitis due to the oleic acid and hydroxytyrosol it contains and protects the liver from oxidative stress and ulcerative colitis.
• Vitamin E, the monounsaturated fatty acids and the antioxidants it contains act preventively for some forms of cancer, osteoporosis and rheumatoid arthritis.
• It has anti-aging properties, has a positive effect on the development of the central nervous system and helps digest other fatty and non-fatty foods, facilitating bile secretions.
• Contributes to longevity and vitality.

Olive oil uses for personal care

• Try making your own handmade lip gloss with olive oil and beeswax.
• Minimal amount on the lashes, it will moisturize them and will act as a transparent layer of mascara.
• A scrub with olive oil and salt will help reduce acne.
• Combine it with sugar and lavender oil and regularly rub the mixture on your skin to keep it hydrated and prevent premature aging and sagging.
• Try mixing olive oil with used coffee grounds and apply it topically on areas of the body with cellulite.
• Fights mild sunburn and helps the skin regain the moisture it needs.
• If you run out of shaving cream, apply a generous amount of olive oil, rub it on the skin, leave it on for a few minutes and shave normally. After rinsing well, you will agree that it was definitely the best shave you have ever done.
• Removes makeup effectively and naturally.
• Removes various dirt, traces of paint or grease from the skin or hands.
• Moisturizes dry scalp and hair, giving them shine and health.
• Add olive oil and lavender essential oils to your bath water to hydrate and soothe your skin.
• Does your child have lice? Smear his hair with plenty of oil, cover it with a cap and leave it for 40 minutes. Then use a regular shampoo and rinse as many times as needed. The olive oil will drown the lice and you will then be able to easily remove them.
• Softens and moisturizes the cuticles and prevents their reappearance.
• Consuming a tablespoon of olive oil daily, prevents constipation and acts as a lubricant for our intestinal system.
• Prevents and treats diaper rash in babies.
• Heat some olive oil and rub it with a cotton swab in your ear to soothe possible infections.
• If you feel dry or itchy throat especially in winter, a little extra virgin olive oil will soothe the symptoms in your larynx.
• Helps reduce and remove accumulated wax in the ears.
• You can use olive oil to make homemade Vaseline and soaps.
• Do “oil pulling”, the new method of detoxification and cleansing of the mouth, skin and the whole body. Put a teaspoon or tablespoon in your mouth if you can stand it, and rinse with it for 20 minutes, as if it were a mouthwash. Then spit it out, rinse it with a solution of lukewarm water and salt and in this way all the dead bacteria and toxins are eliminated.