Notice that we've chosen dark green glass bottles, to keep light out.

We recommend that you keep the bottles in a cupboard or pantry, away from heat and light, both of which will hasten the aging process.

The olive oil is good for at least 2 years after it’s been harvested and pressed. If it’s stored properly (in a cool, dark place) it can last much longer. We recommend finishing a bottle within 6 months of opening it.

As part of the certification process for "extra virgin" status, we send sample bottles to a lab for testing after each harvest. The lab lets us know that the oil qualifies as extra virgin, with plenty of polyphenols (the healthy components), and no defects or contaminants.

We have won awards for our oil from California Olive Oil Council (2018), and from the NYIOOC (2020). We hope to participate more regularly in these competitions and continue to win awards.

And we have lots of repeat customers who will tell you how tasty it is.

We bought Rancho Milagro in December 2010, from the estate of the previous owners. At that time the land was used for grazing cattle. There were no olive trees here.

Now we have about 3000 trees across 40 cultivated acres (out of 182 acres).

The first orchard at Rancho Milagro was planted in 2013. In 2014, we converted another pasture to orchard. And two years later we put in orchards on the eastern side of the property.

Since we planted seedlings that were about 2-3 feet tall, it took 2 more years until they were big enough to bear fruit. Our first harvest was 2016.

We have four varieties of olives. Frantoio and Coratina are Italian cultivars. Picual and Hojiblanca are Spanish olives varieties. 

All the olives start out green, and as they ripen they may become partially purple and later completely purple or black. But even on one tree, the olives won’t be uniformly one color, even at harvest time.

The olive fruit fly is a specific pest. Its larva can invade the fruit and cause spoilage. We apply a biological method to minimize damage. We use a fruit fly bait that is deemed an organically acceptable product. It contains the biologically produced insecticide spinosad, and is acceptable for use on olives in California.

We also have ground squirrels. This rodent is a ground-dwelling variety, different from tree squirrels that are familiar to many. This is such a common pest in our region that the county agricultural office has laminated cards it gives away describing how to manage ground squirrels. 

No, we haven't invested in a fancy mill...yet.

We bring our olives to a neighbor's mill. The mill is within 15 miles of our ranch. We reserve time at their mill, using their staff to handle our half-ton bins of fruit.

It’s important that the fruit is milled as soon after harvest as possible, within 24 hours if possible, to prevent damage to the fruit.

Great question, but difficult to answer accurately. Each year is different - the weather is different (cooler or hotter at different times of the year, wetter or drier than the previous years). When we prune the trees, we may see a dip in production for one year, but an uptick in the following year.

And as the trees mature, we get more fruit from each tree, and therefore more oil from orchards overall.

The target date falls between late October and mid-December. If it’s too early the oil will taste unripe. The later we wait, the more we risk bad weather bringing down the fruit (which can’t be used after lying on the ground).

The date of harvest is a negotiation: 

• Will the olives be ripe enough?
• Can we hire a crew to come help us pick?
• Can we get a date at the local mill?