点评:What a great shop!! Having a love of olive oils this has been on my list for a couple of years. In the past when we visited the area the shop was closed for one reason or another - not this visit!!! The shop was open with several customers and at least two staff members. it was a typical Gulf Coast sunshine filled Saturday.
Lots of olive oils and vinegars - all in the "raw" - that are displayed in stainless steel containers, so you can't see of the product. The good news is the knowledgeable staff is more than willing to ask you questions about what you like, what interest you and give a sample of any and all the products in the store. This is the tricky part.
Having done some rudimentary study of both olive oil and vinegar it put me a disadvantage. I worked in the food industry for more than 20 years and have sampled olive oils and vinegars, from around the world and done some light reading on the subject. The oils and vinegars that I was used to tasting, experiencing and falling in love with have all had been filtered and most, if not all, the natural fire has been removed. That is not the case with these olive oils. I like robust flavors, textures and want to experience the full force of whatever the food has to offer. There was no warning for what was about to happen.
We discussed several of the "robust" olive oils that were fresh, in season, fresh press extra virgin olive oils. All the flavor, all the texture and 100% of the fire. The sample that I was offered was from Spain. When it hit my tastebuds it felt like someone had taken fresh black peppercorn, ground them to a fine dust (super concentrated) and dropped a pinch directly onto the very back of my palette. I choked, coughed and tears ran down my face. No one offered me water, no one attempted to help with the situation and one of the people in the store found it rather amusing. Not laughing out loud but more like laughing under their breath. It was embarrassing to say the least.
After about 2-3 minutes of dealing with this situation I gathered myself and tried another "mild" olive oil and the same fire was present. Nowhere near as the first but very peppery and nothing like what I was used to - nothing!!
Then I tried, and purchased, a rosemary infused "extra virgin" olive oil (it can not be labeled as "extra virgin" since it has been infused) and it had a touch of fire on the end of it as well. I like rosemary - it is amazing and will be a great addition to some of my recipes, but it will not be used for salads or other uses due to the volume the pepper brings. If you do not have a tolerance for pepper, as my wife, then ask and be cautious.
I would recommend a visit. Great shop, interesting idea and filled with an inspired aroma. Just be sure to ask about the peppery fire on the end and be forewarned that it existed in three out of three olive oils that I tried.
翻译:真是一家很棒的商店!!由于我酷爱橄榄油,这家店早就列在我的心愿单上好几年了。以往我们去这一带时,这家店总是因为种种原因关门停业——但这次可不一样!!!这次商店正常营业,有不少顾客光顾,还有至少两名店员在工作。那天是典型的墨西哥湾沿岸地区阳光明媚的周六。
店里陈列着各式各样的橄榄油和醋——全部都是未经加工的“原汁原味”产品,它们被装在不锈钢容器中,因此根本看不到产品的实际模样。好消息是,店员们知识渊博,非常乐意向你询问喜好与兴趣所在,还会让你品尝店里所有的产品样品。不过问题也在这里。
由于我对橄榄油和醋做过一些基础研究,这反而让我处于劣势。我曾在食品行业工作20多年,品尝过来自世界各地的橄榄油和醋,也读过一些相关书籍。我过去常常品尝、体验并深深喜爱的那些橄榄油和醋,全都经过了过滤处理,其中大部分——甚至可以说全部——天然的风味都已被去除。但这些橄榄油则并非如此。我喜欢浓郁的风味与质感,渴望充分体验食物本身所蕴含的所有味道。而对于接下来会发生什么,事先没有任何预兆。
我们讨论了几种“风味浓郁”的橄榄油,它们都是当季新鲜压榨的特级初榨橄榄油。所有的风味、所有的口感,还有100%的“辣度”。我试吃的样品来自西班牙。当它接触到我的味蕾时,那种感觉就像有人把新鲜的黑胡椒磨成极细的粉末(浓度极高),然后撒了一小撮在我舌根处。我顿时被呛到,咳嗽不止,眼泪也流了下来。没人给我水喝,也没人试图帮我缓解不适,而店里有个人居然觉得这场景挺有趣的。没有放声大笑,更像是忍着笑。至少可以说,这挺尴尬的。
在应付了这种情况2到3分钟后,我镇定下来,又试了一种“温和型”的橄榄油,结果还是出现了火辣的感觉。虽然没有第一次那么严重,但辛辣味很重,完全不是我习惯的那种味道——什么都不是!!
后来我又试了,并且买下了。这是一种添加了迷迭香的“特级初榨”橄榄油(不过由于添加了香料,它实际上不能再被标为“特级初榨”了)。喝起来尾韵中带有一丝辣味。我喜欢迷迭香——它风味绝佳,肯定能为我的不少食谱增色不少;不过由于其中辣椒的含量较高,它就不太适合用来做沙拉或用于其他用途了。如果你像我妻子一样不太能承受辣味,那最好先询问清楚并谨慎选用。
我推荐大家去逛逛。这是一家很棒的店。一个有趣的创意,还散发着令人心醉的香气。不过一定要事先询问一下最后是否会有辣椒的辛辣感——我试过的三种橄榄油全都有这种味道。