Priego de Córdoba

Appearance & taste

Priego de Córdoba comes in three types, named after the variety that makes up more than half of the olives. The “Picudo” type is fruity, aromatic, pleasant and sweet on the nose and at first taste. The “Hojiblanco” type is fruity, fresh, pleasant and sweet. The “Picual” type is fruity and aromatic and slightly to moderately bitter.

For “Picudo” and “Hojiblanco” the acidity is at most 0.5 %. All oils must have a peroxide value of at most 15, a K270 value of at most 0.15 and less than 0.1 % moisture and impurities. The name must appear clearly on the label; the regulatory council approves the labels before they may be used.

Production

The oil is obtained from olives of the Picudo, Hojiblanca and Picual varieties. Growing the olives and extracting the oil take place in the defined area. At the oil mill or the bottling plant, every pack receives a guarantee seal or numbered label of the regulatory council, attached in such a way that it cannot be removed and reused elsewhere.

Origin & history

The area is a natural landscape in the south-east of the province of Córdoba, in the middle of the Sierras Subbéticas Natural Park. It is rugged and mountainous, with peaks up to 1,000 m high; the subsoil consists of marl, dolomitic limestone, clays, sands and limestone and gypsum gravel. The olive groves stand on sandy-clayey loam or clay soils with a high lime content. The climate is continental, and temperatures vary greatly with altitude and location. The east gets the least rain, the higher areas around Priego, Carcabuey and Almedinilla the most. According to the specification, soil, climate and careful tending of the trees ensure healthy olives and an oil with characteristics closely tied to the area.