Step 1 – Preparing the Glass
Pour about 25 milliliters — two tablespoons — into your glass of wine. At my olive oil tasting events I do it with an official olive oil glass "blue" why blue? because the colour in olive oil is not directly associated with the quality.
In our olive oil tasting we are comparing our picual early harvest with our picual traditional or harvest time.
Now, cover the top with one hand, and with the other, gently warm the base. The goal is to bring the oil close to 28 °C — that’s the ideal temperature to release all the aromas in a professional tasting.
Step 2 – In the Nose, but wait for the instructions, don't smell yet.
I have to say that your sense of smell will be sharper if you haven’t smoked earlier today, if you don’t wear any perfume or cologne, if you haven’t eaten during last hour, if you used a neutral soup, we want an environment the most neutral as possible, but if it doesn’t apply to you right now, don’t worry do it anyways so you can compare with other times meeting those simple recommendations.
We are going to do a first smell which is the best and most important, it will give us the 70% of the information about the aroma of this oil. You can repeat several times.
In this step we measure two things: intensity of fruitiness and complexity.
We are going to use an easy scale approved by the international olive oil council.
👉 If you smell it already under your chin — that’s very intense fruitiness (8–10).
👉 At your upper lip — intense (6–8).
👉 Only at your nose — medium (3.5–6).
👉 And if you need to dip your nose inside — light (1–3.5).
For complexity, try to describe what you smell:
- fruits like apple or banana 🍏🍌,
- vegetables like tomato or artichoke 🍅,
-
herbs like rosemary or even flowers 🌸.
👉 The more notes you recognize, the more complex the oil.”
You might be thinking tomato is not a vegetable, and you are right, botanically, tomato is a fruit (a berry, in fact). But in olive oil tasting notes, the tomato is usually placed under the vegetable family because it refers more to the green, vegetal aroma (like tomato leaf, tomato vine, or unripe tomato) rather than the sweet, ripe fruit.
And now following what I just said please proceed to smell.
Step 3 – On the Palate
Please wait to know what to look for before you start tasting.
✨ Sweetness: refers to the fluidity that we experience when we introduce the oil through the tip of the tongue. Absence of harshness and astringency. An oil is sweet when it enters cheerfully and fluidly, without resistance or a greasy sensation, and moves forward on our palate like a fresh and light juice.
🌿 Balance: looking for good equilibrium between spiciness and bitterness. An oil will be very balanced if the bitterness and spiciness that we perceive on the palate are in harmony wit each other and adequate in intensity. This intensity should be similar to the intensity of fruitiness in the nose.
🌶️ Aftertaste: the retronasal sensation is an atribute that belongs to the sense of smell, even if it is perceived through the oral cavity. An oil will be better valued if its aftertaste is more powerful and complex.
Bring the cup to your mouth and sip a small amount of oil. Without swallowing, inhale air strongly through your teeth. This releases the retronasal aromas—ascending from the mouth to the nose—allowing you to perceive all its complexity. ✨"
As soon as the oil enters your mouth, you will feel whether it is sweet or not. Sweetness here is linked to fluidity—opposite of pastiness and roughness. A sweet oil enters joyfully, lightly, and quickly as it flows over the tongue. 🌿"
Take a second small sip and try to identify the different tastes and sensations as they unfold on your tongue, palate, and throat. 🌿 This is where bitterness, pungency, and balance reveal the true character of the oil."
You will now perceive the bitterness on the back of the tongue and palate. Bitterness is a positive attribute in quality extra virgin olive oils. As the juice continues its journey inward, you’ll also detect spiciness and its intensity. When bitterness and pungency are moderate and balanced, that is what we call a harmonious, well-balanced oil. ✨"
Now evaluate the complexity of the aromas you’ve perceived in both nose and mouth. 🌿 A true extra virgin olive oil is complex when it evokes multiple layers of fresh, living nature—fruity notes like banana or apple, hints of almond, tomato, or artichoke, the freshness of cut grass, or even herbs and spices like rosemary, mint, or cinnamon. Each aroma appears at its own level, revealing the richness of the oil. ✨"
Finally, put your mind to work. 🧠 Recall the aromas you perceived through the nose and the sensations felt on the palate, then evaluate the oil as a whole. A harmonious oil is one where nose and mouth align in their positive attributes—elegant, balanced, and complex. 🌿✨"
Read the EVOO label carefully. 📖 Identify its origin, the olive variety, and whether it is an early harvest. Then, connect those details with the sensations you experienced. This way, you begin building your own sensory EVOO library.
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