I’m a huge fan of remarkable California olives. They’re plump and fruity, which makes for delicious olive oil too. Excellent olive oil tastes the same as excellent olives smell—fresh, sweet, and tart.
I’m also a huge fan of California wines. While I was travelling out there, I had the opportunity to visit a truly unique winery called New Clairvaux Vineyards that’s run by Cistercian monks. They make a Petite Sirah that’s out of this world. Like the olive oil from the region, it’s fruity and has the perfect balance of acid. Maybe I’m just a big fan of California and most everything it produces.
A highlight of the trip for me was my first chance to smoke beef with olive wood. It worked like a charm. Olive wood gives a light mesquite-style earthiness to the smoke, which balanced perfectly with the fruitiness of the olive oil and the Petite Sirah.
So a lasting memory for me was the dining table shared by a chef, two monks, a winemaker, and three generations of olive farmers. From each of us, a contribution that was a labour of love. And all of us, fans of the others. And definitely fans of zesty olives.
