How to store olive oil.

Love EVOO? Here's how to treat it right. We’re on a mission to get exceptional extra virgin olive oil, direct from independent producers, into your kitchen. A product of this quality deserves the 5-star treatment, so here are four easy steps you can take to make sure you treat it right. 

Extra virgin olive oil is a fresh product: 100% squeezed olives. As such, all the usual suspects—light, air, heat, and time—can affect its quality. Our farm partners do the hard work in the field and at production to achieve incredible quality. We ensure it travels in ideal conditions and have developed bottles, pouches, and stoppers to help you store it right. Now, it’s over to you.

To max out on flavour, and retain its high nutritional value, follow these simple rules... 

Lights out. 

One of the main enemies of EVOO is light. To avoid light oxidising your oil faster, opt for dark glass or vessels that keep out the light. For the best results, and to keep your oil in ideal conditions, go for a fully-opaque ceramic bottle.

Air tight. 

Just like light, air is another issue that degrades olive oil. Although it's hard to stop completely, there are some key culprits—like your pourer—that will cause your oil to loose its freshness. Avoid pourers with open-ended spouts and put a stopper in your bottle. 

Stay cool. 

It might save you time mid-cheffing, but keeping your bottle next to the stove will loose you more than minutes when it comes to the shelf life of your EVOO. Olive oil is happiest at the same temperature as wine (12-14°C), so a cupboard or pantry is the best option. Ceramic bottles are also great for keeping your oil at a stable temperature as the thick walls protect from the heat. Wherever you decide, keep it away from the stove, window, or anywhere with drastic temperature changes.  

Pour, don’t store.

Other than being absolutely delicious, there are practical reasons for wanting to use EVOO like it's going out of fashion. To experience the freshest flavours use within three months of opening or within one month if you want to capture the highest antioxidants. An unopened bottle can last 18-24 months, but still it will never taste as fresh as it will closer to harvest, so don't save it—savour it. 

Related: this is one reason we don't typically like to sell oil in extra large formats. Those five-litre tins sure look like value, but only if you get through them quickly or decant into smaller containers.

Sitting there with loads of air in a container that takes you too long to get through is only going to oxidise that oil and make it go rancid sooner.

So protect your EVOO against air, heat, light, and time by finding the right format, place, and ways to use it up whilst it's fresh and flavourful.