Jancis Robinson is in town, signing the new edition of her definitive World Atlas of Wine.

But we’re here to talk about another Queen today, Koroneiki, aka “the Queen of Greek olives.”

Olive Truck is BACK just in time for the Holiday Season. Locker topper, stocking stuffer, that unique gift for your picky boss… a HALF LITER bottle that goes a LONG way. We’ve preached a couple of their Italian varietals before, and Ops keep asking for more. We’ve been on standby for the next harvest to bring you another astounding deal. The best EVOO money can buy at a fraction of its cost.

Don’t believe that bold statement? What if we told you that the Olive Truck Koroneiki was awarded 95 points by Flos Olei - the first international guide to the best extra virgin olive oils in the world - and ranked amongst the Top 20 globally?! As if that’s not enough, it has swept Gold Medals and Best of Shows coast to coast in US competitions, too. We’re talking serious chops here in the world of EVOO, similar to cult wine standings in the business we know the best.

When it comes to California-grown Greek olive varieties, Koroneiki reigns supreme for intensity and high polyphenol content, and Olive Truck’s execution here is pure craftsmanship. Hand-harvested early in the season right as the fruit turns from green to deep purple, the perfectly ripe olives are pressed on-site just a few minutes after harvest, assuring freshness of flavor and preservation of polyphenols.

It pours a vibrant green and yields a complex, highly aromatic nose. Initial notes of crisp green apple and just-picked rosemary give way to tomato leaf, wild herbs, and green almond. On the palate, Koroneiki’s signature structure takes center stage - delivering a robust, well-defined full body balanced by a pleasing mid-palate grip and a distinct, persistent peppery finish. It is a standout single-varietal EVOO designed as a dipping, sipping, or finishing oil for crusty artisan bread, grilled meats, and roasted vegetables.

It was at a local farmer’s market encounter one fateful summer day that we discovered Olive Truck. You know how much we love entrepreneurship around here, and the brave ones who think outside the box. Olive Truck is such an innovative idea that it’s unfathomable that no one else thought of it before Sam.

Basically, seriously pampered olives destined for EVOO, like fine wine grapes, are fickle to grow and very fragile to handle before they are pressed to make the good stuff. So instead of hauling olives across the state for miles on end, Olive Truck is a boutique mobile milling concept that travels to where the groves are, instead of having the olives travel to facilities far, far away to press and bottle Extra Virgin Olive Oil right at the source, assuring zero attrition to the quality and sense of place along the way.

Like NO OTHER EVOO that we know gets picked and pressed within the same hour!!!

Wine Enthusiast recently wrote that “From an agricultural perspective, it makes sense that many of the world’s most venerable wine regions also make top-quality olive oil… producers often treat it with the same respect for terroir and process as fine wine.”

California is a paradise for exceptional olives, and Olive Truck knows that. This is why they focus on single-origin and varietal oils that express their character and terroir best. This is why they have won all the competitions there are to judge this niche gourmet delicacy. In fact, California is unique, similar to wine, in having more than 75 commercially crucial varieties of fine EVOO growing under its dependable sun to make oils that continue to garner international acclaim.

Mind you, this half-liter glass bottle is a LOT of oil for the money, especially at this best price you’ll find it anywhere, direct or at fine food purveyors, always limited.