Olive Oil Picks and a Tip for Storing Oil from Deborah Krasner
November 2, 2002

Deborah Krasner, author of The Flavors of Olive Oil: A Tasting Guide and Cookbook (Simon & Schuster, 2002) likes to keep these oils in her pantry:

Colavita: This reasonably priced oil from Tuscany has terrific flavor for the price and it's often found in larger supermarkets.

Olio Verde: A lusty, peppery, Sicilian oil with pronounced olive flavor.

Baena Nunez de Prado: From Spain, this unfiltered "flower of the oil" is produced by the extraction method. Deborah considers it one of the great olive oils from Spain and its one of her favorites.

Deborah's Tip for Storing Oil:
When you buy olive oil in quantity, such as in a 5-liter tin, decant some of it into a dark wine bottle. Cap the bottle with a pour spout that has a tiny plastic cover to keep it airtight. (These spouts are even available at K-Mart in the Martha Stewart kitchen section.) This method will give you the advantage of a controlled pour, and will expose only a relatively small amount of oil to room temperature. Store the remainder of the oil, still in the original tin, in a cool basement (best choice), a cool dark pantry, base cabinet, or cupboard (second best), or the refrigerator (especially if your house tends to be hot). When you need to decant more oil into the wine bottle, bring the cool oil slowly to room temperature to liquefy it before pouring it into the bottle. Return the remainder to your cool place.

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