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On February 17 and 18, the mag­nif­i­cent fres­coed halls of the Ducal Palace in Piazza Napoleone will be the set­ting for a trade show, ExtraLucca, that will present a col­lec­tion of high-qual­ity Italian extra vir­gin olive oils.

The fair will give enthu­si­asts and experts in the sec­tor the oppor­tu­nity to dis­cover and taste some of the best national prod­ucts of the sea­son like Frantoio Marsicani from Campania, Fattoria Ramerino and La Ranocchiaia from Tuscany, Azienda Agricola Mandranova from Sicily, NYIOOC 2017 Best in Class win­ner Donato Conserva from Puglia, Giulia Cappelli from Lazio, Olio Cru from Trentino Alto Adige and many oth­ers Italian com­pa­nies of excel­lence.

“Since the begin­ning of this adven­ture, my chal­lenge as a com­mu­ni­ca­tor and ambas­sador of extra vir­gin olive oil was to be able to bring Italian pro­duc­ers and their oils to a small, although very beau­ti­ful, city,” Fausto Borella, the cre­ator of the event revealed. ​“And then, they par­tic­i­pated with moti­va­tion and enthu­si­asm, aware that this is a cul­tural event and also an excel­lent occa­sion to show off and intro­duce their prod­ucts to national and inter­na­tional con­sumers. After six years of ExtraLucca, I can say that the bor­der­less appeal of extra vir­gin olive oil is a real­ity.”

The Ademollo room, dec­o­rated with won­der­ful wall paint­ings, will host a guided blind tast­ing for one hun­dred par­tic­i­pants who will have the oppor­tu­nity to expe­ri­ence fif­teen extra vir­gin olive oils led by Borella and other experts, includ­ing Sonia Donati and Fiammetta Nizzi Griffi.

“The atten­tion paid to this kind of events demon­strates that the cul­ture of high-qual­ity extra vir­gin olive oil is ris­ing. People enjoy tast­ing, dis­cov­er­ing and also pair­ing EVOOs with food — that is what will hap­pen at our event,” Borella said.

The fair will be pre­ceded by the Maestrod’olio Crowns award cer­e­mony for the best extra vir­gin olive oils, and the launch of the guide Terred’Olio 2018 in the the­atre of San Girolamo. For this edi­tion, a crown was designed by the Tuscan sculp­tor Andrea Roggi, who cre­ated an art­work in bronze and cop­per that will go to the best com­pa­nies pre­sented in the guide.

The two-day exhi­bi­tion at the Ducal Palace will be accom­pa­nied by book read­ings, exhi­bi­tions of chefs and pas­try chefs, talks by nutri­tion­ists and food and wine tast­ings open to experts, enthu­si­asts, chil­dren and new­com­ers.

On Saturday the 17^th, the extra vir­gin olive oils will head to the kitchens with chefs includ­ing Giorgio Barchiesi, bet­ter known as Giorgione, and the pizza maker Gennaro Nasti. On Sunday, along with olive oil tast­ings, the pub­lic can learn the secrets of cham­pagne with the ​‘cham­pag­nist’ Samuel Cogliati and get closer to wine with the Grand Crus of the Tuscan Coast.

• ExtraLucca