2024 Extra Virgin Biodynamic SunHawk Olive Oil is ready to purchase!
2024 was another banner year for olives as we harvested in early November 4.3 tons of olives which we milled into 165 gallons of some of the best olive oil we’ve ever tasted! When we planted our first 3,000 olive trees in 2006, the old timers told us that ‘you grow grapes for your children and olives for your grandchildren!’ Truer words have never been spoken. Our family olive orchard is a labor of love and believe me, we aren’t getting rich from bringing you the finest olive oil you’ve ever tasted. But it’s so satisfying to provide pure, extra virgin, Biodynamic, Demeter certified, healthy liquid gold to our family, friends and loyal customers!
Why is our Olive Oil so Delicious and Healthy?
For starters, the ‘terroir’ or land where our orchard sits is perfect for olives. The heavy clay and rocky soil is very similar to Tuscany where olives have been grown for millennia. While this soil type is not conducive to growing big trees, it is ideal for producing the very best olive oil in the world. Our rare and unique climate which combines very hot summer days and cold nights is perfectly suited for olives. In addition to the unique climate we irrigate exclusively with pure unchlorinated rainwater. Rainwater contains more oxygen than normal irrigation water. This oxygenated water allows roots to uptake more water and micronutrients into the plant resulting in more health and vigor in the tree. The biodynamic preparations and organic fish emulsion also combine to produce an exceptionally healthy and delicious crop. In addition, our orchard is harvested by hand with no mechanical methods employed to bruise and disturb our olives. We think it’s worth the extra expense to hand pick our olives and it keeps our local pickers employed! Our olives are taken immediately upon harvest to the olive mill, Olivino, just down the road in Hopland where they are milled promptly in complete freshness. We are so very lucky to have the Olivino Olive Mill almost next door which makes a big difference to the freshness and superb flavor of the end product.
Harvesting the olives at the right time is of utmost importance
In addition to the above factors, the flavor of olive oil is dependent upon the variety of the olives (ours are Tuscan) and more importantly upon the level of maturity of the olives at the time of harvest. Harvesting the olives at the right time is of utmost importance, as it creates the flavor of the oil. Throughout October we walk through our olive orchards frequently to check the trees and see how many of the olives have turned from green to black. We wait to harvest until 50% of the olives on the trees have turned black, while 25% remain green and 25% purple, in between green and black. As the olives ripen and change color, the flavor changes. The green olives are very high in polyphenols (antioxidants), responsible for the sharp peppery flavor. As the olives ripen, they turn darker in color, the darker fruit yields the rich buttery flavor. Finding the perfect blend of ripening olives allows for the ideal blend of peppery and buttery, which we think you’ll agree that we have achieved!
Growing Olives Takes a Village!
Producing top quality olive oil is a family adventure. My wife Nantzy and I and our daughter Sara, along with our farm manager Manuel and his wife Lupe, planted and have managed the crop since 2006. We love to share the rewards and the fun of farming with our children and grandchildren who frequently meander through our lavender labyrinth and walk through our orchards. Our Lavender Labyrinth is the crowning jewell of our Olive orchards giving the entire property a magical quality; especially when it’s filled with our grandkids and their friends. It’s modeled after a 14th century spiritual labyrinth in San Quentin, France and consists of over 700 lavender plants.
Why SunHawk Olive Oil? Our Olive Oil is biodynamically farmed and Demeter Certified, 100% extra virgin, organic, and LOVED by our customers. In fact, so far we have received only 5 star reviews on Etsy. The Polyphenol content in our SunHawk Farms oil is notably high. When analyzed, most good olive oils run from 170-350, SunHawk olive oil consistently scores way high on the polyphenol content scale. Like other antioxidants, Polyphenols fight oxidative stress and are believed to fight against aging related diseases like heart disease, high blood pressure, and cancer. You’ve probably seen the myriad new medical reports that credit olive oil as a medical miracle and life extender when a tablespoon is taken every morning.
Olive oil is recognized for having many health benefits. As Hippocrates said, “Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food”. Studies on high olive oil Mediterranean diets show benefits for bone density, cardiovascular health, brain health, degenerative joint disease and complications of type II diabetes.