Olive Oil Gift Set

Monterosa Tasting Kit – Olive Oil Gift Set

The Monterosa Olive Oil Gift Set is the best way to discover the taste differences of Monterosa's five single-varietal olive oils. The easiest way is to try all varieties with a tasting kit. A beautiful gift box contains 5 small 20ml bottles of the following hand-picked olive oils from the Algarve in Portugal:

Monterosa Olive Oil – 5 Varieties in one Box

Verdeal: Extra virgin oil from southern Portugal, very soft, with a particularly fruity note. Aromas of freshly cut grass pair with sweet almond scent. Perfect with salads, tomatoes, bread, cold soups, or vinaigrette.

Maçanilha: Extra virgin oil from southern Portugal, harmonious, with a particularly herbaceous note. The gourmet's verdict on the herb-intensive Maçanilha oil at the Olivo Avard 2016 was as follows: "Thyme, parsley, mint, basil, lush green, almost unripe apples, lamb's lettuce, avocado, plus a very delicate chicory bitterness and a touch more pungency. Wonderful with a chickpea salad with grilled octopus or burrata, grilled peppers and tuna ventresca (belly)."

Picual: Extra virgin oil from southern Portugal, intensely fruity in taste. The gourmet's verdict on Portugal's "Best Oil of the Year" at the Olivo Avard 2016: bitter, pungent, and powerfully aromatic! Grass, artichoke, cardoon, green tomatoes, pepper, rocket, sage, lemon peel – a grand spectacle.

Cobrancosa: The spiciest of the Monterosa oils, from an old indigenous Portuguese olive variety. Grassy-green notes, aroma of olive and tomato leaves, and white pepper. Pairs well with meat, vegetables, and soups.

and Frantoio: Originating from Tuscany, this variety is considered one of the most important Italian olive oil varieties. Its typical character is rough and stubborn; its consumption produces the typical scratch in the throat. The olive has delicate aromas, acidity, and fruitiness, permeated by pungency and bitterness. One tastes characteristic aromas of fresh grass, green apple, artichoke, marjoram, rosemary, lettuce, celery, and almonds.

As not all varieties are processed into olive oil every year, it can happen that one variety is duplicated.

Monterosa is a craft-working family business in the eastern Algarve. Only about 7km from the cooling sea, there is always a fresh breeze here. In 1969, Detlev von Rosen emigrated from Sweden to Portugal to produce tomatoes and iceberg lettuce for the Northern European market. Later, and still today, he was very successful in cultivating high-quality ornamental plants.

Since 2000, olive trees have been growing on 20 hectares. The previous summers were hot and dry, and the orange trees on the plantation needed immense amounts of water. (1 orange tree needs 1000 liters of water per week). So, olive trees were planted without further ado, with the aim of producing a particularly high-quality extra virgin olive oil. Five different olive varieties grow at Monterosa: Verdeal, Maçanilha, Picual, Cobrançosa, and Frantoio. But olive trees were cultivated and cared for in this special place 2000 years ago, as a Roman trade route, connecting Lisbon with Corduba, passed through Moncarpacho. The in-house stone mill, however, is state-of-the-art. Without long transport routes, the hand-picked olives can be processed directly on the plantation into the finest olive oil.