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A Mahurangi olive oil was named Best in Show at the prestigious Oliveti Northland Olive Oil Awards this month.
Duck Creek Road Olive Oil took the top award and a gold medal with its medium blended oil, comprising J5 and Frantoio olives.
Duck Creek also picked up two silver medals for its Leccino, Koroneiki and Frantoio blend and its Leccino, Koroneiki, Frantoio and J5 blend.
They were competing against top olive growers from all over Auckland and Northland.
Duck Creek owners Derek and Sally Holland say the win is a huge boost for Mahurangi, since its high rainfall and humidity can often be as tough on its olives as it is on its grapes.
“To survive these weather conditions and come through with a win is fantastic for the region,” Sally says.
The win is even more remarkable given the Hollands refuse to spray their crop for diseases such as black spot and anthracnose, where rain droplets sit at the base of olives and cause them to rot.
Sally says Duck Creek gets around these problems by attending to the soil with plenty of mulching and a labour-intensive harvesting process.
Duck Creek uses a pick-a-pod device that was invented in Australia. The pick-a-pod surrounds the tree and resembles an inverted umbrella. Harvested olives are dropped into the pick-a-pod, rather than being placed on a net on the ground. They are then easily inspected at waist height, and any olives showing signs of disease or having been pecked by birds can be discarded before processing.
“We’ve bucked the trend by not spraying and obviously the judges could taste the difference,” Sally says.
For winning Best in Show, the Hollands will be presented with a trophy in November.
The trophy is sculpted from 100-year-old olive branches from Auckland’s Cornwall Park. It is shaped like a bowl with a large sculpted drop of olive oil sitting inside it.
Sally says she has had her eye on the trophy ever since moving to Mahurangi seven years ago.
“If you work for something it just goes to show dreams do come true,” she says.
Judges at the Oliveti awards said the standard of oils presented this year was very high, with none being rejected for defects.
“There was a good representation of well-balanced oils with fruitiness, bitterness and pungency all represented. The oils will provide an excellent culinary experience for consumers, whether for individual tasting or cooking,” the judges said.
