South Australian Olive Oil – Rio Vista Olives Brings Home Gold

This is NOT a sponsored post. I’m a genuine fan of Rio Vista Olives South Australian olive oil, and there’s lots of great reasons for that – including a whole swag full of recent medals.

 

I’m a big fan of fat – because fat is flavour. My fat of choice when it comes to cooking is always olive oil. And because we have some of the best olive oil in the world right here, I always make sure it’s local South Australian olive oil.

The provenance, purity and authenticity of international brands of olive oil has been under frequent clouds over the years – you can’t always be sure of what you’re getting. And why run the risk, when we produce some of the best olive oil in the country, and in the world, right here in South Australia.

Regular readers of these pages will know that I don’t gush about brands without good reason. But when I find one that I love to use, and that is truly worthy of praise, I’m happy to shout out about it  – and South Australian olive oil producer Rio Vista Olives definitely fits that bill! 

It’s the olive oil of choice in my kitchen – and there are some seriously good reasons for my choice.

1. It’s local. Rio Vista grow their olives not far from me at Mt. Torrens, and a tiny bit further away at Mypolonga, where they also press them. In fact, some of the olives they grow at Mypolonga were part of a grove belonging to the family of friends of ours, and I used to buy their oil decades ago. It was always of exceptional quality, and that certainly hasn’t changed.
2. A large range. As they used to say in a very old television ad that will date me horribly, ‘oils ain’t oils’. The flavours and intensity of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) vary immensely depending upon a large range of factors. These include, but aren’t limited to, the region of production, the care taken in cultivation, the care taken in extraction, and the variety of olives used. Rio Vista has  a huge range of South Australian olive oil – EVOO and other pure varieties, single origin oils, a vintage range, and flavoured oils. If you need olive oil in any dish (or bake, yes it’s great in cakes – check out my Lime Cake), you’ll find the right one in their range.
3. Exceptional quality and flavour. Obviously, this is a primary consideration for anyone who cares about the food they prepare and share, and Rio Vista have this in spades. In fact, they’ve just covered themselves in glory at recent olive oil awards, taking out 12 Gold Medals and Best Agrumato/ Flavoured Oil of Show at the Australian International Olive Awards, and 10 medals and four Best in Show awards at the Royal Adelaide Olive Awards, and fifteen medals and three Best in Show awards at the coveted Golden Olive Awards held recently in Rutherglen .

The award-winning agrumato oils are seriously special. This method is a process of flavouring olive oil that doesn’t rely on infusion, with it’s risk of contamination, or the use of questionable flavouring agents. In the agrumato process the flavouring agents are pressed with the olives, resulting in a vibrancy of flavour that literally sings on the tongue – the Rio Vista Basil Pressed EVOO is my current favourite. It tastes just like fresh basil!

You can find their range of splendid South Australian olive oil in Adelaide at Drakes and Romeo supermarkets – check out the agrumato range, it’s incredible!

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