Tokara Olive Oil Tasting and Lunch At The Deli

Many of you will have done wine or beer tasting, olive oil tasting, on the other hand, is a bit more of an unusual experience. I joined a Travel Chat SA media group recently for a Tokara Olive Oil Tasting, followed by lunch at the Delicatessen.

Tokara Wine and Olive Estate

It was not my first time to the stunning estate. If you haven’t been, Tokara Wine and Olive Estate, located on the Helshootge Pass, is in the heart of the Stellenbosch Wine Valley. A picturesque estate surrounded by vineyards and olive groves, with the most exquisite gardens. Over the years, Tokara has become a trendy destination for wine, food, and art lovers.

A Bit of History

When GT and Anne-Marie Ferreira purchased the farm in 1994, their main priority was to create a home for their family. The potential for producing wine, however, quickly became apparent. As they say, the rest is history! Today they produce three amazing ranges of wine, with a focus on Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon.

In many of the established wine-producing regions thought the world, a natural association between the olive grove and the vineyard, has become a tradition. It was a natural progression, therefore, to carry on this tradition at Tokara. So began their journey, in 2000, of producing pure premium extra virgin olive oil. A passion further enforced by a love of cooking and good food.

In 2000 Anne-Marie decided to produce single variety oils, setting Tokara apart from the existing local olive oil producers. She travelled to Italy with Jan Pretorius, the production manager at the time, who was intramental in getting the family olive oil venture off the ground. Extensive travel throughout Italy, lead them to the decision to focus on Tuscan varieties, Frantoio, Leccino and Coratina. Soon after their return, the Tokara Olive Oil journey began in earnest.

Tokara Olive Oil

Today Tokara still focuses primarily on the Tuscan varieties, and have also added Nocellara del Belice from Sicily and Mission from America to the fold.

Gert van Dyk, Tokara’s current olive oil master and operations manager, hosted our tasting. He explained that olive oil is all about capturing the goodness of the fresh olive in the bottle, a task about which he is exceptionally passionate.

A good oil is made on the tree, and at Tokara, I’m lucky enough to be hands-on from the olive groves right through to the final pressing stage ~ Gert van Dyk.

Pressing the olives within 24 hours of being harvested, ensures their diverse flavour profiles. Once harvested and pressed, the oil is pumped into huge containers and left to settle for a few months before bottling. No chemicals are added, nor is there additional processing to extract the maximum oil from every olive. This process allows you to call the end product 100% pure extra virgin olive oil {EVOO}.

The estate produces four cold pressed extra virgin olive oils. The two single variety oils include the delicately flavoured Mission and the full-flavoured and spicy Frantoio. They also produce two multi-variety blends. Additional products in the range, include preserved Calamata olives, as well as an olive paste.

Tokara Olive Oil Tasting

The purpose of an olive oil tasting is primarily to identify the character and flavour profile of the oil and in essence marry the different varieties with various foods.

Gert explained, when tasting oil, the main characters you look for are fruitiness, bitterness and piquancy. All the senses, however, come into play, from the aromas and the actual taste to how it feels in your throat. Tokara produces excellent examples of the taste spectrum of pure extra virgin olive oil, from mild to the more robust.

A Tokara Extra Virgin Olive Oil typically expresses fresh, rounded green fruit aromas on the nose, with hints of apple and artichoke. You can also expect a rich, creamy mouthfeel, balanced by dominant fruit, tingling pepper tones and a pleasant bitterness.

We tasted the Misson 2018, Frantoio 2018, Multi-varietal 2018 and the Premium 2018. Before tasting, you need to warm the glass in our palms, to help release the aromas, as well as the full flavour of the oil. Much like wine tasting, you take a small sip and then swirl the oil in your mouth to experience the full flavour profile. It was fascinating how different each oil flavour profile is. After tasting each oil on its own, we then experienced them with ciabatta bread, salt and cheese. My favourite oil was the Premium 2018, a fusion of the Coratina, Leccino, Frantoio and Mission olive variants.

I thoroughly enjoyed our guided olive oil tasting and learnt so many interesting facts about EVOO, as well as olive oil production in South Africa.

Interesting Facts

Interestingly a pretence that many of us are under is that you cannot use extra virgin olive for cooking. This is, however, a myth, and it is in fact, the healthiest oil there is and what I use for cooking.

You will find some of the best quality olive oils in the world right here in South Africa. Giving us even more reason to support the local industry and not buy imported olive oils.

Olives and Olive Oil have many health benefits and are considered Superfoods. The oil is also a healthy monounsaturated fat, linked to heart health and also promotes longevity.

Awards

Tokara has scooped many awards this year. The 2018 Tokara Mission Single Variety, was one of three contenders to be awarded a gold medal in the ‘Delicate’ category, securing a place in the 2018 Absa Top 10. The Mission single variety is mild and gentle with a finely balanced grassy, herbaceous character. A silver award, in the Intense category, for SA’s Top Extra Virgin Olive Oils, went to the Tokara Premium EVOO. It also happened to be my favourite oil at the tasting.

Tokara Delicatessen

Besides for award-winning wines and some of the best extra virgin olive oil, the estate is home to two restaurants. One of which, The Deli, is a stunning space that overlooks the beautiful gardens and vineyards.

This family-friendly restaurant serves breakfast, as well as light lunches. If you wish to do an olive oil tasting, you can do so at the deli, and the oils can also be purchased there.

We had a delicious summery lunch at the Deli, after our tasting, paired with a selection of Tokara wines. For starters, we had a “Waldorf” Salad, with apple, celery, endive, roasted walnuts, pumpkins seeds, dried cranberry and vegan mayonnaise. We enjoyed our salad with a glass of the Tokara Chardonnay. For mains, I opted for a Preserved Lemon Roasted Chicken Pizza, with mozzarella, caramelised onion and rosemary. It was so yummy and paired perfectly with the Tokara Rosé.

Contact Details

If you wish to do a guided olive oil tasting, like the one I experienced, you can visit the Tasting Lounge. Bookings are advisable, via telephone 021-8085900 or visit www.tokara.com.

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Disclosure

Olive oil tasting and lunch were complimentary. We have no material connection to the brands, products, or services mentioned in this post. Care has been taken to ensure that all information provided, including prices, are deemed correct at time of publishing. Please note that all opinions, content, and images are the property of Inspired Living or Fiona Rossiter unless otherwise stated. To see more, read the full PR & Disclosure Policy below.

Tokara Olive Oil Tasting and Lunch At The Deli