| Producer | Az. Agr. Alessandra Nicolai |
| Crop Year | 2020/2021 |
| Cultivar | Blend – Moraiolo, frantoio, leccino, pendolino, maurino, caninese |
| Region | Lazio (Montefiascone) |
| Harvesting Method | Manual |
| Extraction Method | Continuous – Two phases |
| Milling | Within 12h from harvesting |
| Tasted on | Jan 2021 |
Thank you to Az. Agr. Alessandra Nicolai for sending us A1980 EVOO.
EVOO – Food pairing advice: A1980
Fish Eggs Vegetables
Do you know what happens when you get an office worker born in 1980, living her city life, to move to the countryside? In the case of Alessandra, the producer of A1980, she becomes a happy “oliandola“! In 2011, the volcano inside her soul decides not to allow her stay locked up within four walls anymore, and made her move to the countryside; surely, that was the very same soul of the volcanoes which, throughout history, shaped and made fertile the lands of Tuscia around Lake Bolsena, a territory dedicated to the production of wine, extra virgin olive oil, and many more high-quality products (e.g. chestnuts, lentils and cereals).
Among these lands, home of the cultivars Canino, Moraiolo, and Maurino, but also Frantoio, Leccino and Pendolino, A1980 is born – an organic extra virgin olive oil which respects the natural rhythms of cultivation, and is well suited to go with appetizers and first courses, and, above all, sea and lake fish preparations; who can guess how well this EVO oil would have tasted on the lake eels (a detail visible on the olive oil label) so dear to the Popes who here decorated the famous Rocca di Montefiascone; would have Dante – who put Pope Martin IV in Purgatory because of his gluttony – turned a blind eye then, and place him in Paradise instead?
Appearance & Visual Analysis
A1980 EVO oil is of a bright lime green colour.
Scents & Olfactory analysis
Thistle Lettuce Olives White Flowers Green Apple Rocket Spinach Green Almond Sweet Almonds Tangerine Black Pepper Vanilla
To the nose, A1980 EVO oil shows an elegant mix of vegetable scents intertwining and binding together with spicier floral ones, ending on an excellent fruity flavour note. The aroma opens with vegetable tones of thistle, lettuce, rocket, olive, cut grass and fresh spinach, and continues with bitter and sweet almond scents. In A1980 we can also find a bouquet of white flowers aromas (including that of hawthorn), green apple notes, and a very delicate mandarin scent. In the end, some spiciness and a mix of black pepper and sweet vanilla, all sided by an elegant basil aroma.
Tasting: Aromas & Flavours
Pungency
Bitterness
Artichoke Lettuce Green Almond Olive Black & White Pepper Walnut Vanilla Sage Marjoram
To the taste, A1980 EVO oil gives us an excellent mix of vegetable flavours and spiciness: aromas of artichoke, thistle, lettuce, green olive, walnut and almond are well recognizable, and harmonize perfectly with some peppery spiciness (black, white and pink pepper). A delicate hint of vanilla flavour balances everything out, while sage and marjoram complete the taste of the olive oil. The bitter and pungent sensations are very well-balanced, and of similar intensity.
We love it with…
Learn how to pair food and EVOO with our BEA Method.
A1980 EVO oil is elegant in its aromas, and well-balanced in bitterness and pungency: for these reasons, it perfectly matches fish and vegetable recipes above all; try it on swordfish or tuna croutons, fresh octopus salad, mixed fish skewers, and cold seafood salad.
A1980 EVOO is also excellent on fresh cheese like goat cheese, ricotta or giuncata. Indulge yourself in vegetarian recipes which perfectly bind with the taste of A1980 EVOO: pumpkin patties, chickpeas or lentils burgers, vegetable flan, and couscous.
A1980 gives its best on fish based main courses: baked sea bream, swordfish, cod and sea bass; bread, egg and tomato stuffed cuttlefish, crunchy baked salmon, and tuna carpaccio with guacamole on the side.
Too bad we didn’t have time for it during our meal, but if we were you, we would finish the dinner with a sweet panna cotta garnished by a drizzle of A1980 EVO oil and licorice root powder.
We had fun combining A1980 with a light (yet rich in flavor and taste) second course directly inspired by those Lake Bolsena fishes! Read the recipe, or follow the directions in our video recipe.
The fruitiness of this extra virgin olive oil enhances the sweetness and aromaticity of the fish, binding well with the vegetable and spicy notes of parsley and pink pepper; and A1980 also manages to add a light spicy sensation to fennel, making it even tastier!
Az. Agr. Alessandra Nicolai
“Yes, office employee: for four years I worked in a private practice… four very interesting, very stressful, very visceral years, very… a lot of everything!
It was the end of summer 2011, and an emotional tsunami was forming inside of me.
Do I keep a secure job, with a paycheck at the end of the month, in a very pleasant working environment, with people who have changed me… or do I give up all of this? I left all of that because those four office walls were ultimately taking my life away from me.”
“Do you want to put on the same level the feeling of a November day with the north wind whipping on your face, the cold you feel, the physical fatigue, the clear sky, the olive trees full of fruit, my dad’s countryside, his stories, a sandwich, and coffee in a thermos flask… with a day at the office answering the phone, making photocopies, and always smiling, even when you don’t feel like it?
Even today I would make the same choice again, even when the sky is not always clear and the olive trees are not full of fruits; yes, there are moments of discouragement, of so much effort and little production… Yet, years later, I could not be happier: the countryside gave me a new life!”
A1980 di Alessandra Nicolai
Via Asinello 41,
Montefiascone (VT)
Lazio – Italy
info@millenovecento80.it
Az. Agr. Nicolai website
Terroir & Region
Lazio
Lazio is the region which hosts Italy’s capital city, Rome. Olive culture started in Lazio millenia ago, reaching its maximum prestige during Roman age. Today olive culture is spreading all over the region, especially in the Lazio area of its major lakes and hills, and in the southern zone, the so-called Ciociaria. The most widespread and autochthonous varieties are: Itrana (best known as “Oliva di Gaeta”), Caninese, Carboncella, Frantoio, Leccino and Moraiolo.
Discover other regions.
Cultivar / Olive Variety
Blend
Moraiolo, frantoio, leccino, pendolino, maurino, caninese.
Discover more.