Prima Mensa, a love story... (I)

Miguel — you may remember him — is the grower who represents the 4th generation of an olive-farming family you'll already know under the name Olivar de San Miguel.

Yes, it's thanks to him that we brought you Arraigo, whose extraordinary flavour and quality have led to unprecedented success…

When I first met Miguel, he took me to his olive grove — to one particular area he is incredibly proud of. And he said to me:

– Julio, the oil that comes from these olives is something else. Every year I hand-pick a selection, taking them right at the colour-change moment — when they start losing their green, just before they turn black. That's the oil my friends and family keep for themselves.
– But why, Migue? Why don't you make more of it?
– Because when you pick that early, you're lucky to hit 8% yield — you get almost two-thirds less oil than if you wait until they're black. Nobody pays what that oil is actually worth…

That stopped me in my tracks. Miguel looked at me, saw it on my face, and said — Would you like to take a small bottle with you? To which I replied, completely stunned… Are you serious?!

The drive home felt like it took forever. I had that little glass bottle — no label, nothing — sitting on the passenger seat. I kept glancing at it the way a child looks at a hidden treasure they've just found…

The moment I got home, I grabbed a small plate, a chunk of bread, and sat down at the kitchen table. I picked up the little glass bottle and opened it carefully. I breathed in deeply… Layer upon layer of olive grove aromas — it was almost as if I'd cracked open an olive right there in my own kitchen…

Almost trembling, I poured a little oil. It flowed like a cream, a deep, intense green. I tore off a small piece of bread and dipped it until it was completely soaked…

Honestly, I wouldn't know how to put into words every sensation that hit me in that moment…

All I know is that I kept pouring what I already believed was liquid gold, dipping again and again. And each time, new sensations kept coming. It was as though, with every piece of bread, the flavour just kept building and building, with no end in sight.

So I called Miguel — Migue, as those closest to him like to call him — and I said: Migue, this oil needs to be shared with the world…

And here I am, a year and three months later, making that dream a reality — mine, and why not say it, Migue's too, the dream of four generations of olive growers… That this oil travels from the grove straight to your table, simply and directly, the way the family has been doing it for over 100 years. Only now, that family is a little bigger 🙂

Next week I'll tell you the rest of the story — how we took care of every last detail to bring this extraordinary oil to your table, just as it arrived at mine that day. Every obstacle we had to overcome, and all the love we poured into the journey.

Click here to read the second part…