Cultivation, care, harvest, processing, storage and everything in between.
Excellence and thoroughness involving every family member and every stage of production is another ingredient of a high-quality product. Our motto is the continual adoption of new agronomic practices and technologies that improve the quality of our olive oil and grow demand — always in collaboration with experts. It may look simple, but behind the heady aroma and taste of our golden seasoning lies a great deal of work.
We tend our trees all year round — above all with fruiting pruning around 1 March and rejuvenation pruning of older trees in January, both essential for producing high-quality olive oil. The trees and fruit are protected using only biological and ecological treatments, respecting natural balance and ensuring healthy produce. The soil is worked with a tiller and by mowing the grass, enriched with manure — which results in steady, moderate yields of excellent quality fruit.
The harvest, a festival of family craft and togetherness, is critically dependent on proper technique. We harvest variety by variety, mostly by hand, and timing is everything. The right moment is when 30 % of the fruit is green, 30 % half-green and 30 % ripe — the fruit is separated from leaves and small twigs. After picking, the olives are transported for processing within 12 hours, in perforated plastic crates. Harvest and processing run day by day (no more than 12 hours from picking to pressing) and the whole campaign lasts about a month. The fruit is processed in state-of-the-art equipment, purely mechanically, using a cold process.
The oil is then stored in stainless-steel barrels under inert gas (nitrogen) so it never comes into contact with air (oxygen). To preserve quality, the cellar is climate-controlled to stay between 15 and 18 °C. All of this gives us a steady, high-quality yield of authentic Ljubač olive oil — a source of pride for our family and our village.
