California Olive Ranch Growing Americans’ Taste for Olive Oil
By Lorrie Baumann
Silicon Valley technocrat Gregg Kelley had a nice little career going for himself in 2006. He’d taken two dot-coms public and settled into a consulting career in which he could choose the clients he wanted to advise on how to succeed the way he had. He ditched it all when the owners of California Olive Ranch came to him and said they’d learned how to make a good product and wanted his help to scale up their operation to compete in the national market. Eight years later, he has no regrets.
“It was just the right time. The owners of the company had learned what they needed to learn and were looking for a CFO [chief financial officer]. I was interested in their approach to the industry,” he said. “I really liked the people who owned the company, liked the opportunity. It checked that box for me. I took a pretty significant pay cut to join the company. It was a leap of faith. It was right place, right people, right time.”
“It’s been a great opportunity. A change of direction. I wanted to lead a life where I could look at myself in the mirror,” he adds. “There were two things I wanted to do: be a good husband and a good father and have a positive impact on the world. I get to do that now…. Those are the simple rules to live my life by.”
The officers see viagra cheapest one domestic assault after another, often with escalating violence. Financial Inadequacy Men who are under-paid best price for sildenafil and unemployed are under constant stress when it comes to stay financially stable. Drug companies have long attempted to make a drug that could rev up a woman’s libido, but there haven’t been any drugs approved for that. cialis price check out now Am I the discount viagra online only one who is absolutely appalled by the superstore Target’s use of the great Beatles’ hit entitled “Hello Goodbye” (although in the commercial center. Kelley is now California Olive Ranch’s Chief Executive Officer, and the company has been registering sales growth rates of 30 to 50 percent per year for a compound annual growth rate exceeding 45 percent over the past eight years. California Olive Ranch has become the U.S.’s largest domestic olive oil producer: in terms of consumer sales, it’s the #4 brand in the grocery channel, the #1 brand in the specialty/gourmet channel and the #3 brand in the natural channel, according to SPINS. With just under 15,000 acres planted with olive trees now, Kelley is actively looking for another 3,000 more acres to plant this year to feed rapidly growing consumer demand for extra virgin olive oils from California.
A few factors have combined to drive that growth, according to Kelley. Americans are becoming more aware of the virtues of high-quality olive oils, and improved technology has allowed California Olive Ranch to provide a better product at an accessible price point. “California has had an olive industry for hundreds of years, but it stayed small until technology got better. The ability to hit a price point that makes it accessible is what accelerates that learning curve,” Kelley said. “You break this barrier of accessibility for a larger number of people. California has made the norm become a much higher quality product. The American consumer, time and time again, has a proven preference for higher-quality products. Wine was an example of that. We’re seeing it in cheese, in chocolate…. We are participating in the same evolution.”
Kelley is determined to propel Americans along the learning curve by putting the taste of California Olive Ranch oil on as many tongues as possible. He says that letting people smell the aroma of a freshly opened bottle of good extra virgin olive oil and then letting them taste the oil and feel the warmth of it in their throats is all it takes to inspire them to want that experience again, especially if they can have it for a price premium of just a few dollars a bottle. “What makes us different is the ability to provide a much higher quality experience regularly,” he said. “The vast majority of the oil we produce would win awards around the world.”
“Great olive oils add to the experience of a good meal,” he said. “That was the ‘Aha!’ for me that was the final hook that got me involved in the industry and got me into California Olive Ranch.”
San Joaquin Valley Olive Oil Competition Winners Announced
The Olive Press’ Picual (Sonoma) and Coldani Olive Ranch’s Calivirgin Bountiful Basil (Lodi) have been named the best of show winners in the 2nd Annual San Joaquin Valley Olive Oil Competition. The competition, open to all olive oil producers in the state of California with products made from their most recent olive harvest, received a total of 61 entries from 18 different olive oil producers from throughout the state.
Entries were received in two classes, extra virgin olive oils and flavored olive oil, with nine subcategories in total. Gold and silver medals were awarded, as well as an overall best of show selected for each of the two classes. In total there were 39 EVOO and 22 flavored olive oil entries that were judged by a panel of seven judges from the California Olive Oil Council Taste Panel. The judging took place on March 8 in Pleasanton, California.
Gold medals in the extra virgin oil class went to Enzo Olive Oil Company’s Tyler Florence Test Kitchen EVOO (Clovis) and Rosenthal Olive Ranch’s Arbosana (Madera), which both won in the category for Spanish blends. Gold medals for Spanish single variety oils went to Coldani Olive Ranch’s Calivirgin Premium EVOO (Lodi), Calolea Olive Ranch’s Calolea Mission (Marysville) and The Olive Press’ Picual (Sonoma).
Gold medals for Italian blends went to Winter Creek Olive Oil’s Winter Creek Olive Oil (Winter Creek), Winter Creek Olive Oil’s Ruscello d’Inverno (Winter Creek), Coldani Olive Ranch’s Lodi Olive Growers Blend (Lodi), The Olive Press’ Italian Blend (Sonoma), Coppetti Olive Oil’s Harvest Blend (Modesto), Bava Family Grove’s Bava Monticelli Estate Napa Valley (Escalon), San Miguel Olive Farm’s Tuscan Nectar of the Gods (San Miguel) and San Miguel Olive Farm’s Tuscan Gold (San Miguel). Coldani Olive Ranch’s Lodi Olive Oil Ascolano (Lodi) won the sole gold medal awarded for an Italian single variety oil, and Bozzano Olive Ranch’s A2 (Stockton) won a gold medal for other blends.
So, if you are going through impotence and looking for a pill that can transform your sex life and ignite that burned out cialis 25mg the flame, then buy sildenafil citrate online. Those who have already taken those products have reported obtaining their desired effects less than half an hour from administering the product. viagra store in canada http://djpaulkom.tv/dj-paul-offers-justin-bieber-advice/ Kamagra is one among some reliable and great treatments that provide freedom from those buy levitra in canada humiliating moments faced in the bed. Hormones are chemical mediators produced by certain glands of body responsible for controlling or certain functions. levitra free samples Gold medals for flavored oils went to The Olive Press’ Lime (Sonoma) and The Olive Press’ Limonata (Sonoma), which competed in the citrus-flavored category. Coldani Olive Ranch’s Calivirgin Bountiful Basil (Lodi) won the gold medal for an herbal-flavored oil, and Coldani Olive Ranch’s Calivirgin Jalapeno Garlic (Lodi) and Coldani Olive Ranch’s Calivirgin Extreme Heat Serrano (Lodi) won gold medals for oils with other flavorings.
Silver medals in the extra virgin olive oils class went to Fandango Olive Oil’s Fiesta (Paso Robles), a Spanish blend; Italian blends, Frog Hollow Farm’s Frog Hollow Farm Organic EVOO (Brentwood), Bozzano Olive Ranch’s Toscana Organic (Stockton), San Miguel Olive Farm’s Tuscan Pristine (San Miguel) and La Ferme Soleil’s La Ferme Soleil (San Francisco); and other blends, Rancho Azul y Oro’s Estate Blend (San Miguel) and Rosenthal Olive Ranch’s Koroneiki (Madera). Among the single variety oils, The Olive Press’ Arbosana (Sonoma), The Olive Press’ Arbequina (Sonoma), The Olive Press’ Sevillano (Sonoma), Fandango Olive Oil’s Elegante (Paso Robles), Enzo Olive Oil Company’s Delicate Ranch 11 (Clovis) and Coppetti Olive Oil’s Fall Harvest (Modesto) won silver medals for Spanish single-variety oils; Coldani Olive Ranch’s Lodi Olive Oil Frantoio EVOO (Lodi) and Alta Cresta Olive Oil’s Alta Cresta Premium Coratina (Paso Robles) won silver medals for Italian single-variety oils, and Enzo Olive Oil Company’s Bold Ranch 11 (Clovis) and The Olive Press’ Mission EVOO (Sonoma) won silver medals for other single-variety oils.
In the category for citrus-flavored oils, Olive Ranch’s Meyer Lemon (Marysville), Coldani Olive Ranch’s Calivirgin Lusty Lemon (Lodi), The Olive Press’ Clementine (Sonoma) and Rancho Azul y Oro’s Estate Blend Orange (San Miguel) were awarded silver medals. Coldani Olive Ranch’s Calivirgin Rustic Rosemary (Lodi) and Coldani Olive Ranch’s Calivirgin Oh! Oregano (Lodi) were awarded silver medals in the herb-flavored oils category, and The Olive Press’ Jalapeno (Sonoma) and Coldani Olive Ranch’s Calivirgin Hot Virgin Jalapeno (Lodi) were awarded silver medals for oils with other flavors.
Planning is already underway for the 2017 SJVOOC, which will be held April 4. More information will be available in November at www.fresnofair.com/sjv-olive-oil-competition.
Domestic Balsamic in the Heart of New Mexico
By Micah Cheek
“May third, we had a serious freeze. We lost about a quarter of the grapes,” says Steve Darland of The Darland Company. “One year we had a family of bears.” Darland’s farm is located in Monticello, New Mexico, a former ghost town just north of Truth Or Consequences. This arid environment, though sometimes unforgiving, is an ideal place to age balsamic vinegar. Darland personally inspects and prunes his grapevines throughout the growing season. Every grape counts; it will take 200 pounds of fruit and at least 12 years to make each bottle of Traditional Organic Balsamic of Monticello.
Grapes that make it to harvest are crushed and heated over a wood fire. After being reduced and fermented, the grape must is poured off into handmade barrels. These casks are crafted by Francesco Renzi, whose family has been making them in the same building for 500 years, long before balsamic vinegar was considered a viable mass market product. The grape will spend 12 years circulating through casks made of oak, chestnut, cherry, juniper, acacia and ash, drawing volatile compounds from each to develop its snappy, resinous flavor. Darland says, “Periods of intense work are followed by long periods of time where grapes are growing or vinegar is aging in its casks.”
Monticello is a hub for organic farmers, despite the spring frosts and animals. They all meet in Truth Or Consequences for a farmer’s market, which the Darlands helped start after their first grape harvest. The revenue for their first batch of balsamic was over a decade away, so other sources of income came from the farm. “A great way to fill the time is to grow unique, but potentially popular, healthy, delicious organic crops which thrive in this environment,” says Darland. The farm produced shishito peppers, pomegranates, and other organic products. “My wife, Jane, became the Johnny Appleseed of Sierra County by helping other growers choose, then order and plant the right fruit trees to survive and thrive in our climate – thousands of trees,” he adds.
https://unica-web.com/archive/2011/films2011.html canadian viagra sales This medicine could harm the health of intimacy. Finale Penile problem is a big predicament for men. viagra sales on line The consumers have given a positive response buy viagra professional from people related to the treatment of ED. In other words, High Quality Acai sans prescription viagra products should be regarded as food as opposed to supplements. The more you learn about Darland’s process, the farther removed it is from the balsamic vinegars readily available on shelves. These products, known as industrial vinegars, are generally aged for as little as hours or days before being thickened with sugar, molasses or mosto cotto, a sweet grape syrup. This thick and sweet vinegar is made to mimic the traditional balsamic flavor, because demand for the product has long ago outstripped supply. This demand has fueled a massive market for the sweetened balsamic. “It may be a polite fake, but with an estimated quarter billion dollars of annual US sales, it is a much, much better business than it is a gourmet food item,” says Darland. For him, these products do not even fit into the category of real balsamic vinegar. “The key thing for people to learn: when you read the ingredient list on the label and it has more than one, it is industrial balsamic. Like it or not.”
The Darlands devote their down time to travel. They conduct tastings at stores and restaurants to highlight the differences between their balsamic and the less expensive industrial alternatives. “We take nearly every opportunity to visit islands of foodies, wherever we can sample and talk about the real thing, since ours is the only American commercial balsamic and probably the only organic version in the world,” says Darland. Surprisingly, one of the most difficult groups to convince is chefs. “Chefs are challenged with being fashionable, and making a profit. In culinary school or other training, chefs are shown how to make faux balsamic,” says Darland. Many chefs will cook down inexpensive industrial vinegars with sugar to make a facsimile of a rich, aged balsamic to use for plate presentation. They end up with a sweet product that clings to the tongue, but has had all the subtle flavors and volatile compounds cooked out of it. “It’s a hoax on the menu. It makes everyone the fool – the wait help, the kitchen staff, the chef and the diner all get the wrong lesson without ever tasting balsamic.” says Darland. “There’s a cruel humor in it.”
While cost-conscious chefs are reticent to pick up a bottle of Monticello vinegar, Darland has had to turn away many retailers trying purchase his product. Producing a maximum of 1000 bottles per year makes relationships with retailers a delicate balancing act. Each new retailer thins out the number of bottles that go to all the rest. “We sell online and through very special retailers, and have to be judicious with supply. We sold everything we bottled last year, and we were down to just two bottles when the year ended,” says Darland. “So, we want retail allies with smart retail staff who we can rely on for sales. In turn they can rely on us for supply.” In addition to the 1000 4.5-ounce bottles, limited batches of one ounce bottles are released, as well as a condiment balsamic version made from the same grape must, but aged for less than 12 years.
When asked how he is planning on expanding, Darland states, “I’m not.” While some nationwide retailers have tried to bring Traditional Organic Balsamic of Monticello to their shelves, Darland doesn’t have enough stock, and more importantly, doesn’t like the way they do business. “If we had done that, we would have done it 23 years ago,” says Darland. “The retailers we have are really smart and really know what they’ve got.” Though making organic and artisan products is more involved, Darland steadfastly believes that small production of quality ingredients has a growing place in the market. “These days, everything is monetized. But with true balsamic, there is no short term fiscal shortcut. Rather than repeating the classics, people have settled for fakes. Still, there is room for real, and things made with great care,” says Darland. “Handcrafted, organic, small production is a lively segment for balsamic and many gourmet products.”
