Posted on May 24, 2010 - by napavalleyolivegrowers

Grove 45 Extra Virgin Olive Oil

This extra virgin olive oil comes from an historic property located in a remote area on the eastern slopes of the Napa Valley. In 1992, Bonnie Storm armed with a dream of producing great olive oil, purchased this 130-year-old cattle and dairy ranch. This area, known as Pope Valley, remains rugged and generally unsettled. Due to its reputation for being hotter, drier and colder (not to mention all of the rattlesnakes!) than the bucolic valley floor, it provides the stressful climate in which olive trees are known to thrive.

In 1994, as Bonnie planted the 1,000 trees she had imported from Italy, she was unaware that her family had a history in olive oil production. She was astonished to find the ancestral connection that her German great grandfather settled in California in 1850 and supported himself by planting olive trees and making oil.

Previously known as Storm Olive Oil, Grove 45 extra virgin olive oil has come onto the market as a popular new brand of Napa Valley Olive Oil.  They delivered their first case (only 60 cases produced) to Sunshine Market in early February and were completely sold out by the end of March!

In 2009 Nena Talcott joined Bonnie Storm to create a new olive oil and decided to name it Grove 45, the year they were both born.  The fruit is the same as the Storm Olive Oil- estate bottled Italian variatetals imported from Italy in 1994.  This year, they pressed their olives half on a stone and half at the Olive Press on a hammer mill to create a slightly softer oil.  They imported aluminum containers and embossed pewter labels from France then bottled at Sonoma Valley Bottling in late January.  Harvest this year was in late November.

Grove 45 EVOO won a gold for Innovative Design at the L.A. County Fair this year- congratulations!

They are carried by Zabar’s in NYC, Murray’s Cheese in NYC, Oakville Grocery, Sunshine Market, Erin Martin Design in St. Helean, the Olive Press, We Olive, Draeger’s Markets in Blackhawk, Menlo Park and San Mateo, and Epicurious in Carbondale, CO.

Varietals:  Frantoio, Pendolino, Leccino and Maurino. In 2000, the Sicilian variety Nocellara del Belice was planted, which now makes up the “front grove”—this variety comprises about 10% of the finished blend.

www.grove45.com