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Cuisine - Olive Oil |
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Wellington is a creative city and an innovative capital. And Wellington City Council perfectly exemplifies these qualities with an award winning enterprise. In May 2005, the Council won a gold medal at the biggest and one of the most prestigious international olive oil competitions at the L.A. County Fair, California. The Wellington City Council’s Suprema a Situ (Supreme in Location) extra virgin olive oil was awarded one of the nine gold and 11 silver medals won by New Zealand growers who submitted 26 of the 366 entries, which came mainly from more traditional olive growing countries such as Italy, Greece and Spain. To crown the Council’s achievement, its Publication and Design department was also awarded a gold medal for the quality of design of the elegant labels and packaging. Mayor Kerry Prendergast says that the medals are an amazing achievement, particularly as the whole project was done on a shoestring, with Council staff helping pick the olives, selecting the name and designing the labels and packaging. Wellington’s olive oil is harvested from French Verdale olive trees planted in Mount Victoria in the 1980s. The first vintage was harvested in 2002 after Graeme Harris of Kapiti Olives Ltd approached the Council with a plan to produce premium olive oil. He says the 2004 vintage is full-bodied, herbaceous, with a peppery finish and one of the best olive oils he has tasted – and it is a major achievement to win gold against such strong global competition. Only 72 bottles of the 2004 Suprema a Situ olive oil have been produced and none is available for public sale. They are sent to influential people involved in the food media and to local, national and internal media, as well as to New Zealand embassies and high commissions. Department Details: |
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