OLIVE TREES

They were not raised up by nothing,
nor by money, nor by the master,
but by the silent earth,
by work and by sweat.

Together with pure water
and together with the planets,
these three gave beauty
to the twisted trunks.

(Miguel Hernández – 1937)

Olive trees and olives

EMPELTRE

This is the type of olive that we also know as “Mallorcan” in Mallorca and in Ibiza they call it “campesina”. Its name comes from the process of grafting and it seems that a wild olive tree which has been grafted three times itself is the origin of this type of olive (in the fourth graft, the quality no longer improves and is therefore unnecessary).

This olive is one of the three allowed to be distinguished by the “Denomination of Origin Oil from Mallorca”, and is also grown in the Denomination of Origin Oil of the Terra Alta, in Tarragona, and in the Aragonese Denominations of Origin Oil of Sierra del Moncayo and Oil from Bajo Aragón. It is also known with all these names: Zaragozana, Verdiel, Vera, Terra Alta, De la Ley, Salseña, Oblonga, Navarro, Negral, Macho, Ley, Injerto, Fina, de Aceite, Común and Aragonesa.
It is an olive which has a high level of productivity ripening early in the season .It does not have the defect of producing a high yield of olives one season followed by a season with a low yield. When it first ripens; it becomes blue and as it matures it turns black. It is easy to harvest and the oil it produces is yellow, smooth and sweet, with fruity aromas.

ARBEQUINA

It is the second type of olive allowed to be distinguished by the “Denomination of Origin Oil from Mallorca”. It is originally from the town of Arbeca, in the region of Les Garrigues, in Lleida (Catalonia) where it probably arrived from Palestine in the 17th century and brought in person by the of Duke of Medinacelli.

It is very resistant and gives a high and constant production. It is spherical, symmetrical and small. When ripe it has characteristic reddish tones. It produces an oil of excellent quality with a delicate aroma, an essence of citrus and a predominantly sweet flavour. It has little stability and it is advisable to mix it with other oils.

PICUAL

It is the third and last type of olive allowed to be distinguished by the “Denomination of Origin Oil from Mallorca”. It received its name because it has the form of a peak that characterises this fruit. It is the most important variety in Andalusia and throughout Spain.
It is also known by the names of Nevadillo, Nevadillo Blanco, Marteño, Lopereño, Corriente, Andaluza, Picúa, Blanco, Fina, Morcona, Jabata, Nevado, Blanco Nevado, Lopereño, Salgar and Temprana.
When ripened it turns black. It produces an oil with a high level of conservation capacity and a bitter and spicy taste, with fruity aromas.