Ok, so maybe sometimes it’s not at all that easy to spot fake olive oils since they too come in beautifully designed bottles sometimes and at a price closely matching real extra virgin olive oil, which we all know is the most expensive of olive oils.
So how do you know that you’ve bought real extra virgin and not some counterfeit product? Most people argue you can tell great olive oil from fake olive oil by putting it to the taste test.
How to taste olive oil and what olive oil should taste like
If you’re thinking that olive oil should taste like olives, you are right. But between one olive type and another, there are many traits and aromas.
While the uninitiated may not taste the difference between real and fake, professional tasters are said to spot the latter from a mile away.
The olive oil tasting ritual is similar to wine tasting actually. Here is how it usually goes in an olive oil workshop where professional tastings take place.
- Oil is poured into dark blue glasses so that the oil can be examined based on smell and flavor, not upon color.
- Olive oil warm, tasters hold the cup between their hands, cupping the glass in one hand and covering the glass with the other, then swirling and warming the oil for a couple of minutes.
- In comes whiffing the oil to notice the aromas, and then sipping without swallowing so that the oil fills the mouth and the taster can get his impression through all the different taste buds.
- The next step of the tasting is a process called „retronasal,” which is when the taster sucks air into the mouth to aerate the oil, then closes the mouth and exhales through the nose. Sometimes the process is accompanied by noises or even making faces to intensify the perception.
- The final step in the tasting is to swallow some or all of the oil, finally noting on the traits and attributes by degree.
You don’t have to be a professional taster to taste real olive oil from fake olive oil because poor quality oils taste pretty bad.
But you do have to be somewhat of a professional to tell if an olive oil tastes fruity or astringent – both positive traits, or if an olive oil tastes musty or rancid – both negative traits. And believe it or not, home cooks, and this is nothing to be ashamed of, have a hard time distinguishing oils based solely on taste tests.
So here’s how a home cook can tell if an olive oil is fake.
- Put it to the fridge test: if the oil tends to solidify after having spent some time in the fridge, then the chances of it being real olive oil are pretty good. The Extra virgin olive oil contains in a large proportion monounsaturated fatty acids that solidify under cold temperatures.
- Buy only from local olive growers: or if that’s not available (since not everyone lives in Texas or California), from trusted brands. You are sure to get your money’s worth when buying from real producers who are passionate about their work.