Ari Weinzweig's Guide to Good Olives
August 26, 2000

Ari Weinzweig, founder of the fabulous Zingerman's in Ann Arbor, Michigan, gives us a guide to the dizzying array of olives available in markets today. To purchase olives and an astounding variety of top-quality specialty foods from around the world by mail order, contact Zingerman's. Their staff is very knowledgeable and helpful and they have a catalog.

Zingerman's
422 Detroit Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
Store: 888-636-8162
Deli: 734-663-DELI

Olives from Italy
Ligurian: These are the olives of the Italian Riviera, picked in the hills along the coast both east and west of Genoa. Picked late in the season, Ligurian olives are black in color, high in oil, with a delicate sweet flavor. In Liguria, the same olives are used for oil and for eating. The Taggiasca (plural, Taggiasche) is a small olive, the size of the nail on your little finger. It's a variety that was developed centuries ago by the Benedictine monks near the Ligurian town of Taggia, hence the name. A bit bigger and maybe a little meatier than the neighboring French Nicoise, which are grown a hundred miles to the west. The traditional cure in the region is to soak freshly picked olives for 40 days in fresh water, which is changed daily. From there the olives are put into a brine solution of water and sea salt, scented with thyme, rosemary, and laurel bay leaves. I like to marinate them with a bit of orange peel, fennel, fresh garlic cloves, and olive oil (from Liguria, of course).

Gaeta: Purple-brown olives from central Italy. Good in pasta dishes or on pizzas (nearby Naples is the home of the pizza).

Cerignola: Huge, crisp green olives from the area around Bari in the province of Puglia down in Italy's southeast corner. The size of a shell-on walnut, Cerignolas make impressive additions to party trays or antipasto platters.

Olives from France
Nicoise: The tiny black jewels of the olive world, real Nicoise olives have a unique delicate flavor. They're essential to making authentic regional dishes like Salade Nicoise with tuna, hard-cooked eggs, green beans, and tomatoes; or Pissaladiere, a Provencal onion, olive, and anchovy "pizza."

Nyons: Real Nyons olives can be hard to get your hands on and they're not inexpensive. But they're also some of the best olives around. First dry-cured, then aged in brine, the olives of Nyons are plump and politely wrinkled, with large smooth pits. They're particularly good dressed with good Provencal olive oil and wild herbs such as thyme and rosemary. If I had to pick one olive to eat every day, this would probably be it. But be sure you're getting the real thing - there are countless "French" olives being sold which are actually from North Africa. How to tell the authentic article? A bit by sight, but definitely by the flavor. Authentic Nyons olives from France are usually a bit duller shade of black than the North African olives cured in the French style, which are shinier and slicker looking. More importantly, the Nyons olives are deliciously, richly flavorful, whereas the North African imposters have a flatness that reminds me a little of the "heaven forbid" California black ripe olives out of the can.

Picholine: Crisp, uncracked, green olives from southern France, Picholines have a nice, nutty flavor with anise undertones. Try them with fresh fennel and olive oil. They're also great for cooking. Try them in chicken or fish stews.

Olives from Spain
Gordal: These are more commonly knows as "Queen" olives in this country, but I like the Spanish name. Gorda means "fat" in Spanish, which is an appropriate name for these large green olives. They have a firm meaty texture and benefit from the addition of southern Spanish spices such as cumin, garlic, thyme and a splash of sherry vinegar.

Manzanilla: Smaller, crisper and nuttier than Gordal, these cracked, brownish-green olives are some of Spain's best. Try them dressed with olive oil and a generous dose of chopped fresh garlic.

Farga Aragon or Empeltre: Lesser known in this country, these sweet black olives are native to the region of Aragon in northern Spain. Almond-shaped, succulently sweet, and, at their best, very ripe and very delicious.

Arbequinas: Small, round, brown olives from the province of Catalunya in northeastern Spain. Originally from the town of Arbeca in the district of Lleida, Arbequina olives are the dominant olive of the area. Like Ligurian olives, producers use them extensively as both an oil olive and a table olive. Also like the Ligurian, the Arbequinas are very small. At most they weigh in at a couple of grams each. They have a unique nutty flavor and are excellent eaten out of hand.

Olives from Greece
Kalamatas: The best-known Greek olives, Kalamatas come from the valley of Messina on the western end of the Peloponnesian peninsula near the town of Kalamata. They have a distinctive, pointed almond shape and a beautiful black-purple color. The flavor of Kalamatas is made even more distinctive than most because of their curing process - the olives are cracked then cured in a red-wine vinegar brine that gives them an almost wine-like flavor.

The best Kalamatas I've ever had are, without question, those that are hand-picked. There's a night-and-day difference between the silky-smooth, rich texture of the best hand-picked product and the barrels of inexpensive, slightly bitter, oft-bruised Kalamatas that are commonly available in every deli.

Amfissa: Purple-black olives from the area around Delphi, the legendary home of the Greek oracles. If you eat enough of them you may be able to tell the future. Picked very ripe, Amfissas are soft-textured, sweet and almost melt in your mouth. A nice contrast to the sharper Greek cheeses and an excellent last-minute addition to a Mediterranean bean soup.

Thasos: Also known as Throumbes, these shriveled, wrinkled olives come from the island of Thasos. Dry cured then lightly coated with olive oil, they have a nice meaty texture and an intense olive flavor. Try them dressed with a little olive oil and oregano.

Nafplion: Cracked green olives from the valley of Argos in the eastern half of the Peloponessus. Nafplions have a nutty, slightly smoky flavor that s enhanced by dressing with lemon and fresh dill.

Elitses: Very hard to get in the United States, these tiny, tiny dark black olives from Crete are the size of a large pine nut, very sweet and tender. On Crete the locals eat them by the handful and spit out the pits like watermelon seeds. If you happen upon some, snap them up.

Olives from Israel
Souri: The Middle East is home to a number of varieties of good olives. The Souri (which means "Syrian") olive is native to Israel and much of the Middle East.

Olives from North Africa
Sahli: Tiny, sweet, succulent little black pearls of olive flavor. Known in North Africa as Sahlis, these savory little sweets are like the candy of the olive world. I eat them by the handful.

Olives from Morocco
The olive markets of Morocco are an impressive sight - mounds of multi-colored olives dressed with an array of different spices. The most readily available in this country are the dry-cured, black Moroccan olives, which have a meaty texture akin to dried prunes. They're excellent marinated with North African spices such as cumin and hot chiles. Moroccans cook with them extensively and use them in chicken or lamb tagines.

Olives from the United States
Most all American olives come from California, though there are small quantities grown in Arizona and Texas. Olives were brought to California by Spanish missionaries as they worked their way up the coast. Though the majority of California olives end up in cans, there are traditionally cured olives out there to be had. I would like to tell you about all the great American olives I've enjoyed, but the truth is that I haven't had many. What I have had is a whole bunch of so-so olives seasoned with a load and a half of garlic and spices to make up for the lack of flavor in the olive itself. Well, not really. I'm sure there s some good ones out there, so I continue to search.

Mission: The most widely grown California olive. Originally planted to be processed and canned, some are picked early and pressed for oil. Fortunately, some are dry-cured for eating, resulting in a wrinkled, shiny-skinned olive with a slightly bitter flavor.

Sevillano: Large, brine-cured, green, meaty olives similar to the Spanish-style Gordal.