I was fortunate to grow up in the same home my father and my late grandfather grew up in.  Although they lived in a few homes over the years and the house had changed ownership between my grandfather and I, there is still quite a bit of history in the bones of this late 1920’s home.  The look of the house has been remodeled a few times from a little house on the prairie style to more recently a Tuscan Mediterranean look.  There are many olive trees scattered around the estate for aesthetic purposes; some of them older than our grandparents and some of them only 20-30 years old.  I actually counted for the first time and there are 52 olive trees.  Year after year we let the olives fall to the ground and clean up after them.  Some years someone will ask to pick them for canning but they usually get tired of picking after 2-3 trees.  After ten years in the olive oil business my father finally had all of the trees handpicked and asked me to mill them into oil.  It was only about one ton of olives so much to my chagrin, as olive miller I wasn’t looking forward to separating this small batch because it takes me just as long to mill ten tons of olives into oil as it does one.  I did, however, and to my surprise this motley crew of varieties (some predominantly eating/canning varieties and some oil) produced pretty tasty oil.  There are some Frantoio olives, and some classic California Mission.  Some very large Barouni olives which are a variety grown almost exclusively in Tunisia and there must be at least a few Ascolano trees because its signature floral taste comes through in the finished product.  This small batch of oil which we are so witty and appropriately calling the Coldani Estate Blend is actually a very beautiful oil and one I think will appeal to many taste palates.  It has a very strong floral note but I would consider it between a delicate and medium tasting oil so it won’t overpower dishes you use it on.  Sauté fish or vegetables or drizzle over a fresh summer salad.  It will also compliment strong flavors such as Gorgonzola and bleu cheeses or smoked salmon.  Without further ado; we are releasing our first refill program extra virgin olive oil sold exclusively from our Lodi location: 13950 N. Thornton Road, Lodi CA.  If you would like more information on how to get this oil and how our refill program works please CLICK HERE

Photo's:  Top Photo shows original ranch house built in the late 1920's and a Coldani family gathering.