After entering their highest number of brands to the 2022 NYIOOC, Portuguese producers earned 35 of the industry's most coveted quality awards.
Part of our continuing special coverage of the 2022 NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition.
Portuguese producers won 17 Gold and 18 Silver Awards at the 2022 NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition after producing a record-high yield of around 200 million liters of olive oil in the 2021/22 crop year.
Mariana Matos, the secretary-general of Casa do Azeite, the Portuguese Olive Oil Association, said she was not surprised by the stellar results.
“In recent years, Portuguese production has increased by around 500 percent due to huge public and private investment,” she told Olive Oil Times. “More important than the increase in the quantity is the excellent quality, with around 95 percent extra virgin olive oil currently being produced in the country.”
Trás-os-Montes Prime from northern Portugal was awarded a Gold for its medium blend and two Silver Awards for its medium Cobrancosa blends.
See Also:The Best Olive Oils from Portugal“These awards are a recognition for our work and a huge motivation to keep trying in each harvest to produce the best possible extra virgin olive oils,” co-owner António Pavão said.
Pavão listed his family’s passion, their native olive tree cultivars, the region’s terroir, the dedication of their collaborators and the expertise of his brother — who makes the final blends — as factors that set their product apart.
He said it was a challenge during the previous harvest to maintain the quality levels of the preceding ones. “Most worrying is the huge increase in production and material costs,” Pavão said.
Also, from Trás-os-Montes, Casa Agrícola Roboredo Madeira earned a Gold and Silver Award for its organic delicate blends.
The company’s commercial director, Miguel Azevedo Remédio, said the awards were a great honor. “It means that we’re on the right path in terms of what we want for our olive oils: always the best quality,” he said.
“We’re in the unique Douro Superior region taking advantage of taking good care of very old olive groves,” Remédio added.
The company blends its oils, as they do with their wines, until they achieve the desired profiles.
He said labor shortages were a problem during the previous harvest, and they expect the lack of rainfall to impact the next crop, but they will be focusing on their milling process to maintain their quality.
Mercorural, another producer from Trás-os-Montes, took home a Gold Award for its medium organic blend.
The company’s marketing manager, Eduardo Casas, said the award afforded its brand prestige and global visibility. In addition, he said the region’s terroir and unique cultivars set their oils apart.
For Mercorural, the 2021/22 harvest was a success in terms of quality and quantity, but they expect a lower yield this year.
Family-owned Quinta dos Olmais in the north of the country earned a Silver Award for its organic medium-intensity Cobrancosa.
The company’s co-owner, Julio Alves, said the only challenge during their previous, record-breaking harvest was the usual lack of laborers. He also expressed concerns about the upcoming harvest due to high temperatures during the flowering season and dry winter.
Segredos Do Côa from the country’s northern Duoro region earned a Silver for its organic medium blend.
Anibal Soares, the company’s chief executive and producer, said the olives for their unfiltered field blend are hand-picked from their centenary trees that grow in clay soils on high slopes, and their olives are harvested early, before they fully ripen.
He added it was challenging to find qualified workers during the harvest season. Winds and low rainfall might prevent a high yield this fall, but that remains to be seen.
Meanwhile, Esporão, in the country’s southern Alentejo region, received a Gold Award for its delicate Cordovil and a Silver Award for its medium Cobrancosa blend.
Ana Carrilho, the company’s chief oleologist, said it was a “tremendous honor” to receive the awards that verified the quality of their oils produced from native Portuguese cultivars.
“Our mission is to make the finest products that nature provides in a responsible and inspiring way,” she said.
Carrilho said Esporão’s sustainable extra virgin olive oils express the Alentejo region.
The 2021/22 harvest was Esporão’s best, but Carrilho said she also foresees a difficult harvest ahead due to current weather conditions.
From the Eastern Algarve region in the south, producer Viveiros Monterosa was awarded a Gold for its medium Cobrancosa and two Silvers for its delicate Macanilha de Tavira and its delicate blend.
Viveiros Monterosa sales representative António Duarte said he was delighted with the results and that the NYIOOC awards are important to promote the brand.
The sustainable company uses traditional processes combined with modern technology. “We still work with a granite stone press in conjunction with more modern machinery,” Duarte said.
He added that the company’s main challenge during the previous harvest was to adapt their process to harvest and process their large yield. He said they expect a lower yield but a high-quality result next time.
Back in the Alentejo region, Monte Vale de Baio won a Silver Award for its delicate organic Galega.
“It was a great honor for us to receive a Silver Award at the NYIOOC,” said Alan Andrew, the co-owner of Monte Vale de Baio. “We have worked hard to use regenerative organic practices in our non-irrigated Galega olive groves to produce a high-quality olive oil that is delicious and sustainable.”
Andrew said the company hopes to promote the practice of small-scale organic production in Portugal.
“We hope that the award will give us exposure to help consumers know we are in the market and invite them to visit our farm,” he said.
Andrew said the olive fly was a challenge during the previous harvest, as always, and added that the company expects a lower yield this year. “It seems that after a very abundant year last year, this year the trees will take a little break,” he said.
Monte do Camelo, also from Portugal’s south, earned a Silver Award for its Tratturo de Fronteira brand, a delicate Galega.
“It is a recognition of our work,” said Ana Cardoso, the company’s co-owner, “but above all, a success for our first olive oil, which makes us believe that we are on the right track.”
Cardoso said the small business focuses on quality rather than quantity, being sure to extract oil within six hours of harvesting the fuits.
Cardosa described the previous harvest — Monte do Camelo’s first — as a new experience, with plenty of trial and error.
“Nonetheless, we are focused on improving our quality regardless of the quantity,” she said.
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