DeOrtegas Cornicabra Extra Virgin Organic Olive Oil, 500ml

DeOrtegas Cornicabra Extra Virgin Organic Olive Oil comes from Yecla, in the Murcia region of Spain, where the Ortega family has been growing olives for over 30 years. Cornicabra is the native variety here, and the family treats it like the local favourite it is. The olives are picked straight from the tree, never off the ground, and pressed within six hours. That speed matters. It's why the oil tastes so alive: grass, green tomato, artichoke, and a note of green almond that lingers at the end. Is this your first time buying from us?

The taste starts almost sweet, then turns bold. Medium bitterness, a bit of spice, and a finish that makes you want another piece of bread to mop it up with.

• Early harvest, cold extracted within six hours
• Grown on family farms in Yecla, Murcia
• Low acidity at 0.1% oleic acid
• Gold Medal, TerraOlivo, three separate years
• Intense golden colour, medium intensity

We'd pour this over grilled asparagus or a baked potato split open and steaming. It also holds its own in a stew, where the bitterness and spice don't get lost. The Ortegas say Cornicabra is one of the most stable olive oil varieties around, which is handy if you cook with it often and don't want it turning on you.

This is a family-run mill, not a big cooperative. Marcelo and Rafaela Ortega started their own press in 2008, and they still handle the whole process themselves, from picking to bottling. It shows in the oil.