The first winter...does it affect the quality and taste of olive oil?

Arabia Weather - Every olive harvest season, farmers eagerly await rain, believing that the “first winter” greatly improves the quality and taste of olive oil.

The idea that rain falls for the first time on olive trees, positively affecting the taste of its oil, is a well-known matter among farmers, especially the old ones, as they consider that this event makes the oil after pressing less bitter, and leads to a change in the color of the oil and an increase in the amount of oil contained in the fruit, and many people have circulated this idea among them. Which led to confirmation that the “first winter” affects the quality and taste of olive oil.

The effect of the first rainfall on the quality of olive oil

One of the farmers who confirmed this effect is Abu Talab, who explained that the first rainfall on olive fruits increases the percentage of oil in the seed, and when the fruits are harvested before that, the amount of oil is less, but not significantly. He added that olive oil differs when it is not The trees are exposed to rain, stressing that the bitterness of olive oil appears differently, taking into account that its color also varies.

While some farmers confirm this rule, others deny the extent of its validity, which leads to some farmers delaying harvesting the fruits until the “first winter” arrives. Farmer Abdel Razzaq denies the effect of rain on the quality and percentage of olive oil, but he notes that rain may only change the taste of olive oil. Especially when a good period of time has passed since the beginning of the harvest season, which leads to the ripening of the fruits and an increase in the oil content in them.

This idea remains open to doubt among supporters and opponents, as the head of the Olive Research Department at the National Center for Agricultural Research denies the extent to which the rain falling for the first time on the olive tree affects its quality and flavour, and explains that this rainfall may hinder the processes of extracting oil from the fruit instead of improving it.

Engineer Ibrahim Al-Amad advises farmers that it is necessary to harvest olives when 60-70% of the fruits are colored purple in order to obtain better quality oil. He advises not to delay harvesting after rainfall for more than a week before harvesting, as this leads to an increase in the amount of water inside the fruit without increasing the amount of olive oil. In the amount of oil.

Al-Amad believes that rainfall of more than 20 mm at least a week before harvesting reduces some of the sensory characteristics of olive oil, such as “bitterness” and bitterness resulting from the presence of antioxidants, as rain works to reduce their concentration inside the fruit.

In conclusion, the mayors encourage farmers to carry out supplementary irrigation of rain-fed crops during the summer months using the plastic barrel irrigation technique.

Also know:

Steadfast like olives...the olive tree and its relationship with rain

Light or heavy rain... Why does rainfall differ from time to time?

Sources:

alsaa

aliqtisadi