With more producers taking advantage of advances in milling technology these days, are pitted oils, known as denocciolati in Italy, set to become a more common sight on store shelves or are they destined to remain a niche product?
One producer who has been making pitted oils for some time is Annalisa Torzilli of II Molino, a farm near Viterbo on the Umbria-Lazio border of Italy. Annalisa first got into pitted oils while taking an olive oil sommelier course in 2002.
“Since then, I’ve always appreciated this type of oil, more delicate than conventionally-produced oils,” Torzilli said. She was so impressed that, when the farm installed their own mill in 2003, she also ordered a pitting machine. “We now produce denocciolati oils every year, and it represents the flagship product in our range which we label with the Tuscia DOP.”
Antonino Mennella of Madonna dell'Olivo, a small estate with around 2,000 trees — a mix of Carpellese, Itrana, Carolea and other varieties — near Salerno, is another producer with a long history of making pitted oils. In his case, it was the legendary Italian wine and food critic Luigi Veronelli who encouraged him. “Veronelli wanted me to participate in his Olio Secondo Veronelli project which encouraged producers to make monocultivar and denocciolati oils,” explained Antonino.
Antonino is adamant that in certain respects, pitted oils enjoy an advantage over conventional oils. “Pitted oils have higher levels of polyphenols, fewer peroxides and lower acidity, findings that were confirmed by chemical tests carried out at my mill,” he said. Like Annalisa, he also draws attention to the more delicate character of these oils, “From a sensory perspective, these are oils with a softer, less pungent profile.”
The exact properties of pitted oils are not universally agreed upon. Alessandro Leone of the University of Foggia’s Department of Science of Agriculture, Food and Environment (SAFE) has conducted research into the area.
“Analytical results indicate that stoning did not affect free acidity and peroxide values, but showed higher concentrations of phenol compounds,” Alessandro noted. His research confirmed that the practice can influence an oil’s sensory characteristics.
“The stoning process modified the volatile profile by increasing the C6 unsaturated aldehydes strictly related to the cut-grass sensory notes of the oil, increasing the sensory score compared to traditional oils,” said Alessandro. But even in this area, there is an element of uncertainty. “A well-balanced and bitter and pungent taste is obtained in stoned oil, although some varieties show more prominent bitter components when the core is removed.”
One expert who is keen for more research is CalAthena consultant Alexandra Kicenik Devarenne. “I would like to see more experimentation with depitting. I have tasted some excellent and distinctive depitted oils, and I’d be interested in seeing what the technique yields with more varieties.” Devarenne echoes the general lack of consensus on the organoleptic characteristics of pitted oils. “It seems like there is more to be learned about the polyphenol profiles that result from depitting since the sensory results sometimes seem contradictory.”
There are also other complications for producers making pitted oils. As you would expect, the addition of machinery — typically a separate pitting machine — means a higher cost of production and, according to Leone, the pit fragments in traditional oil extraction can actually help the extraction process, breaking down olive pulp cells and making the separation of oil and water easier. More