Gordon Ramsey Scrambled Eggs Breakfast

Eggs are one of the best vehicles to taste olive oils with, and this looks like a great way of preparing eggs. The choice of olive oil drizzled on the bread in this video would completely alter the experience of the final dish (assuming a high-quality oil was used, they would all be good).

Australian Olive and Olive Oil Information

This is a summary of what's available about Australian olive oil from the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation of the Australian government. On this same site, for those interested in Wattle seed info, there are many articles on Australian bushfoods and wattle seed.

1.1 New Plant Products Research Reports

Quality Enhancement of Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oils (06/135 UCS-33A)
- Full report (700k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (24k)

The Natural Chemistry of Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oil (06/132 DAN-239A)
- Full report (1meg) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (8k)

Tasting and Classifying Virgin Olive Oil - An international course for panel supervisors 12 – 16 December 2005 at University of Imperia, Italy (06/070 TA 056-19) - Full report (300k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (8k)

Olive Variety Regional Performance Study (05-160 Appendix to Final Report SAR-47A)
Full report (720k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (36k)

National Olive Variety Assessment – (NOVA) – Stage 2 (05/155 SAR-47A)
Full report (600k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (36k)

From Planting to Harvest — A study of water requirements of olives, from planting to first commercial harvest (05/039 DEB-2A)
Full report (131k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (8 kb)

Sustainable Pest and Disease Management in Australian Olive Production (05/080 UWS-17A)
Full report (360k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (8 kb)

Olive Harvest - Harvest timing for optimal olive oil quality (05/013 RIRDC DAN-197A)
Full report (460k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (8 kb)

The Olive Industry– An environmental management systems framework (04/057 RIRDC NEL-1A)
Full report (295Kb) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (8 kb)

Wild olive selection for quality oil production (04/101 UA-54A)
Full report (1.3megs) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (8 kb)

Olive water use and yield - monitoring the relationship (03/048 UA-47A)
- Full report 427k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (8 kb)

NOVA – the National Olive Variety Assessment Project (03/054 SAR-23A)
- Full report 174k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Executive Summary (8 kb)

Olive Variety Assessment for Subtropical Summer Rainfall Regions (03/021 OAP-1A)
- Full report (260k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Summary Report (8 kb)

Olive Oil Yield, Quality and Cultivar Identification (01/23 UCS-19A)
- Full report (104k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Summary Report (8 kb)

R&D Plan for the Australian Olive Industry 2003-2008 (02/119 AOL-6A)
- Full report (128k) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Summary Report (8 kb)
You can also read this report online (www.rirdc.gov.au/pub/olive5yr.htm)

Regional Australian Olive Oil Processing Plants (GGO 1A 00/187)
- Full report (337 kbs) is a PDF file & needs Acrobat Reader || Summary Report 14 kb)

Olive Oil Forums - Powered by vBulletin

The things I do not yet know about olive oil are unimaginably large. I had no idea this existed. I'm upset that nothing I've ever visited has pushed me toward this before and I had to stumble onto it through a Google search for "by Paul Vossen" ... (sigh)

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Olive Cultivars - Australia

Olive Cultivars in Australia, with Frantoio as an example of the depth of explanation:

"The following list is by no means a comprehensive guide to all olive cultivars available in Australia. However, it does cover all those cultivars which have been proven in Australian, and in many cases international, trials. Many other cultivars are currently under trial in Australia, however, their commercial viability is not yet known. For information on other available cultivars, please contact Australis Plants.

FRANTOIO

Other names - (Also grown in Australia under the name Paragon) Frantoiano, Correggiola, Correggiolo, Razzo, Gentile (These five are considered to be of the same 'family' or 'varietal population' as Frantoio due to their extremely similar biological and organoleptic characteristics and their traditional region in central Italy. The Frantoio grown by Olives Australia have been DNA tested and match the Frantoio grown in Tuscany, Italy. Please see Issue 10 of the Australian Olive Grower journal.

General - Fruit is small in size, ripens late in the season, and has a very high oil content. The flesh to pit ratio is average. Frantoio produces regular heavy crops. Although the tree has medium to high vigour, the mature tree is generally low at about 8 metres. Frantoio is said to be the benchmark for olive oil in Italy. The cultivar has an expansive crown and long pendulous fruiting branches. It is generally said to be self fertilising however a number of growers use pollinators.

Climatic Considerations - Presently, Frantoio is grown mainly in the Tuscany region of central Italy. However, it has proven itself to be extremely adaptable to diverse and harsh climatic conditions in other areas while still giving an excellent crop. It is very resistant to extremes in cold. In fact, we saw a number of Frantoio orchards under up to 600mm of snow during December 1995. The snow only remained on the trees for two days which did not damage the actual biological structure of the leaves and bark; however, due to the weight of the snow, a number of primary branches were damaged which will reduce the crop in the following season. It should be noted though, that any fruit which was still left on the trees during these days of snow was damaged by the cold and would produce a poorer quality oil. Many Frantoio were planted in Tuscany in the mid eighties to replace trees which were killed during the 1985 freeze.

Commercial Viability - Gives an excellent quality oil in great quantities. The fresh oil is generally quite strong/bitter and is therefore used widely as a blending oil to increase the flavour of less distinct cultivars. Its excellent balance of acids allows the oil to be kept for up to two years. Frantoio is the most productive cultivar in central Italy. A single Australian test has shown that the acidity of oil taken from Correggiola increases as the season progresses. If further trials show this to be true, it can be easily overcome by picking the fruit during the first two months of the harvesting period rather than later in the season.

Pests and Disease - Sensitive to peacock spot (Cycloconium oleaginum or Spilocaea oleaginea).

Pollinators - A number of Italian growers say that planting an occasional Pendulina cultivar may increase crops by up to 10%. If a grower chooses to plant Pendulina for cross-pollination, 5-10% of the total orchard's trees as Pendulina is sufficient.