Thank you to Az. Visconti for sending us their Unico EVOO.
| Producer | Az. Visconti, storie di terra |
| Crop Year | 2019/2020 |
| Cultivar | Peranzana 100% |
| Region | Apulia (Torremaggiore) |
| Harvesting Method | Manual, with facilitators |
| Extraction Method | Continuous |
| Milling | Within 12 hours of collection |
| Tasted on | June 2020 |
EVOO – Food pairing advice
Fish Vegetables Pasta Meat Bruschetta
Unico Visconti extra virgin olive oil – 100% from cultivar Peranzana – is an excellent equilibrist: it manages to well balance the taste between the green vegetable notes of almond, lettuce, olives and aromatic herbs, and the warm red notes of tomato, pine nuts and black pepper.
The Visconti company has managed to create an excellent interpretation of the Peranzana cultivar, which – in Daunia and in the upper part of Tavoliere delle Puglie – owns its on soul and unique identity, not to be banalized in a comparison with its two “sisters”, Ogliarola and Coratina; and it couldn’t have been otherwise, given the potential of the company’s 30+ hectares of olive groves, with the presence of many secular and ultra-secular trees among others.
Thanks to its pungency, slightly stronger than its bitterness, Unico EVOO immediately makes us think of combinations with different sauces and stews, but also tasty fish and traditional Apulian recipes; we chose to ennoble it in a recipe combined with Peranzana pickled olives also produced by the Visconti company – find out which one at the end of the review!
You can find it on our shop!
Also read the review of Blend EVOO by Visconti (Peranzana & Coratina cultivars).
Appearance & Visual Analysis
Unico EVOO is of a bright lime green colour, with shining yellow highlights.
Scents & Olfactory analysis
Grass Artichoke Green Almond Celery Lettuce Tomato medium-ripe Pine Nuts Green Apple Laurel Rosemary Green peppercorn
Unico EVOO has a rich olfactory panorama which ranges from intense green hints of freshly cut grass, artichoke, green almond, green peppercorn, celery and lettuce, to sweet full tones of flavour of medium ripe tomatoes, pine nuts and soft green apple; it also expresses tones of aromatic herbs such as rosemary and bay leaf.
Tasting: Aromas & Flavours
Pungency
Bitterness
Green Olive Thistle Artichoke Lettuce Green Tomato Asparagus Black Pepper Rosemary Lemon
To the taste, Unico EVOO strikes the palate once again with its green vegetable scents which almost become the protagonists of the gustatory analysis: green olives, thistle, artichoke, lettuce, green almond, green tomato and aromas of asparagus play with your taste buds with elegance and harmony; these notes of flavour are then followed and enriched by spicy tones of black pepper, a Mediterranean herb aroma of rosemary, and delicate scents of green and yellow lemons.
The pungency comes in the closure boosting once again the flavour of these tastes in the mouth, ultimately creating the perfect feeling of cleanliness in the mouth.
We love it with…
Learn how to pair EVOO and food on our easy guide: Olive Oil Pairings.
As you may have already understood by reading the other sections of this review, Peranzana Unico EVOO by Visconti is able to satisfy different palates, as it can be paired to multiple kinds of dishes thanks to its vegetable soul, hints of tomato, pepper and Mediterranean herbs, and its strong pungency. Thanks to these characteristics, we suggest combining it with sauces, stews, white meat, fish and oven-roasted vegetables.
Unico EVOO is excellent on tomato bruschetta, Caprese of mozzarella and tomato, broad beans and pecorino, and why not, even with sweet medium-seasoned prosciutto such as Parma ham.
Unico EVOO is also good to go on pasta, especially pasta with tomato sauce and meat or vegetables – pasta alla pecorara (typical Abruzzo recipe made with a sauce of tomato, ricotta cheese and olives), potato and provola pasta, pasta with peas, orecchiette, and pasta courses with tomato sauce and fish.
On vegetables, Unico EVO oil pairs well with mixed salads such as the classic Caesar salad, and on more traditional recipes like a bean and chicory soup, ciceri e tria, and braised green beans.
You can pair Unico to both stewed meat, grilled turkey or chicken, and Apulian typical fish-based dishes such as rice, potatoes and mussels, grilled octopus (or cooked in guazzetto), and mussels au gratin.
We chose to taste Unico EVOO with a gorgeous stuffed squid, with a stew of potatoes, cherry tomatoes, onion and pickled Peranzana olives by Visconti on the side; for this preparation, with our choice of EVOO, we needed both to enhance the tomato notes of the dish, and to give it a more balsamic and Mediterranean soul, balancing the sweetness of the fish and of its filling. Unico EVOO managed to make the recipe even richer, tastier and more balanced than before, perfectly matching all the different flavors of the dish!
Visconti, Storie di Terra
The Visconti company took its first steps in olive oil production in Puglia, in 1974, and since then wrote its history; through the years, it kept a light on the research of new cultivation and production methods which aiming at high-quality production, all while paying attention to the smallest details, from field cultivation up to to the conservation of oil bottles. In 2017 it also became a slow food praesidium.
“Brothers, children and grandchildren: our stories of land are stories of people. Our work tastes like family, unity, staying together, but has also the added and personal value that each of us can bring. In fact, it has been since generations that the Visconti family cultivated the land and gathered its generous fruit. The company has over 100 hectares of cultivated land ranging from wheat to tomatoes, from vineyards to olive groves. The olive-covered area is represented by over 30 hectares, with a total that exceeds 5000 plants; among these, about 80%, is represented by centuries-old and multi-secular trees.”.
“Since always cultivating lands is the thing we do best: in our family, we hand down a true art which is full of all the knowledge, skills and expertise required in the processes of cultivating olives and then pressing them. An art that has its roots in the best rural tradition, preciously preserved and transmitted, and which always aims at continuous experimentation in the search for innovation, both in production and in cultivation.”
Visconti, Storie di Terra
Via Foggia km 0.100
71017 Torremaggiore (FG)
Apulia – Italy
Tel: +39 0882 382362
Visconti, Storie di Terra Website
Terroir & Region
Apulia
Puglia, or Apulia, is one of the Southern regions of Italy. This area is the heart of Italian olive oil production, and when you try EVO oil from Apulia it’s almost as if you could taste the product of the region’s wellness, and when this extraordinary setting meets the enormous skills of the producers and millers of Apulia, you are sure to try one of the best expressions of Extra virgin olive oil.
Discover other regions.
Cultivar / Olive variety
Peranzana
Peranzana is a typical Apulian cultivar mainly grown in the Foggia province, in the areas of Torremaggiore, San Severo, San Paolo Civitate and Serracapriola in particular (i.e. Danuia and the upper Tavoliere delle Puglie). The oil yield is medium and Peranzana-based EVO oils have balanced bitterness and spiciness, and typical hints of flavour of almond, artichoke and tomato.
Also discover other cultivars.