Taste The Earth

Location: Castelvenere, Campania

In other words: "An oasis in an under-visited region of Italia" 

Owner and Wine-maker Nicola Venditti will tell you the same. Ask him how he would describe his extra virgin olive oil, cold pressed within a few hours after harvesting the Racioppella and Femminella olives that are typical in Campania and he simply says, "Unique." To give us a better idea of how unique it is, he tells us he prefers to always use it "crudo," never for cooking so the delicate nuances of the oil flavors can come through. Ideally, Nicola eats it with legumes or directly on bread. Their official analysis reads like this: "Yellow-green and slightly cloudy, moderately fruity and green, lingering, with hints of artichoke and tomato. Accompanied best with vegetables, salads, and toasted bread with garlic." 

Recently, the azienda has been carefully updated with more modern technology. But not much else changed. The family still produces their quality products the old way: Without any chemical agents, "in order to purify and return Bacco's precious drink to the desirable, competitive market it deserves." 

In other words: Using very old land, very old methods, and very old standards of excellence, Antica Masseria Venditti has unceasingly produced some of the very best liquids of both grape and olive. That's what happens when you've been in the biz since 1595.