The Grove
Aquiferra is a grove of 650 olive trees planted on
6 acres of free-draining, ashy sandy loam over gravel. The
soil type is classified as Poporangi known locally as red metal.
Below it flows the Heretaunga Aquifer. The area experiences
hot, dry summers and frosty winters. Of the traditional olive
growing regions of the world, New Zealand’s climate
most closely resembles that of Tuscany.
The Trees
 The majority of olive trees at Aquiferra are Tuscan
varieties – Frantoio
and Leccino with some Pendolino as pollinators. The balance
are Picual, from Spain, and a hedge-row on the western boundary
of the more wind-tolerant Greek variety, Koroneiki. These were
selected to produce high quality cuisine oil. In one corner
of the grove are three trees each of Kalamata and Manzanilla
for home use as table olives.
Most of these trees were planted in Autumn, 2003, laid out
in formal rows 6 x 6 metres apart. Posts and wires along the
rows hold the drip-line irrigation hoses and provide support
for juvenile trees.
The Process
 Olives at Aquiferra are harvested during late May
and June. They are hand-picked using the traditional method
of strip-raking the olives onto sheeting on the ground. They
are then gently poured into shallow, aerated crates and taken
to a nearby olive press where they are pressed within 24 hours
of harvest.
Our 2007 harvest was cold pressed using an Officine Mechaniche
Toscane SPA press at Village Press, Hawke's Bay. This crop,
from 4 year old trees, produced 600 litres of oil which was
stored in stainless steel vats and allowed to settle for three
months before bottling.
The Oil
 We
have a limited supply available of our 2007 Aquiferra Extra
Virgin Olive Oil. This is a medium intensity blend of Picual,
Leccino, Frantoio and Pendolino olive varieties. It has finely
balanced fruit and buttery grass flavours with a mild peppery
finish. NZLab tests verified its free fatty/oleic acid level
is 0.2% and peroxide value is 1.5meq/kg. It is bottled in
dark glass. If stored correctly
it will easily last for 2 years from pressing.
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