But the truth is less comfortable: not all Spanish olive oil is good olive oil. In fact, a large part of what is produced in Spain today has little to do with quality. Real quality is not decided by the country, the label, or the bottle. It starts much earlier — on the land itself.

To understand what artisanal Spanish extra virgin olive oil really is, we need to look at how most olive oil is actually produced.

Spain Has Olive Oil — and Two Very Different Systems

Spain produces enormous quantities of olive oil. To achieve this, most production follows an industrial logic: speed, volume, and efficiency.

Large areas of olive groves are managed so machines can harvest as fast as possible. The soil is often kept bare with chemicals because living ground slows tractors down. Green grass is seen as a problem, not as a sign of healthy land.

For many farmers in this system, olive growing is no longer about food quality. It is about delivering olives to the mill, getting paid per kilo, and moving on to the next field. What happens to the oil afterward is no longer their concern.

This system produces most of the olive oil on the market — and yes, much of it is Spanish.

How Olives Are Commonly Harvested in Industrial Production

In many conventional olive groves, olives are not carefully picked. Trees are shaken by machines, and olives fall directly onto the ground.

They are not collected immediately.

Often, olives:

• lie on the soil for days or even weeks
• are exposed to heat, moisture, and dirt
• begin to ferment and rot

When they are finally brought to the mill, no one asks how long they have been on the ground. They are weighed, the farmer is paid, and that is the end of the relationship.

Chemical treatments are widely used because they allow one tractor to harvest many hectares in a single day. Without chemicals, harvesting would require time, people, and care — and that costs money.

Why This Olive Oil Still Becomes “Extra Virgin”

By the time these olives are pressed, the oil often has serious defects. It smells unpleasant and tastes bad. It is not suitable for direct consumption.

This is why refining exists.

Refining is used to:

• remove bad smells
• neutralize unpleasant flavors
• correct defects caused by fermentation

After refining, what remains is a neutral fat. To make it sellable, it is blended with a small percentage of better oil and adjusted to fit legal limits.

Despite this process, the final product can still legally be sold as extra virgin olive oil.

This is not a theory. It is how the current system works.

The Cooperativa Myth

Many tourists and travelers believe that buying olive oil from a cooperativa means buying good olive oil. It feels more authentic than supermarket brands.

It is true that cooperativa oil is one step above mass-market supermarket oil. But it is still a volume-driven system.

In a cooperativa:

• olives from many farmers are mixed together
• quality differences disappear
• olives that lay on the ground are pressed together with fresher ones
• speed matters more than freshness

The result is often olive oil that:

• barely meets extra virgin standards
• has acidity close to the legal maximum
• comes from chemically treated land
• lacks freshness and nutritional value

It may feel traditional, but it is not top-quality olive oil.

Why Acidity and Labels Are Misleading

Extra virgin olive oil must legally have an acidity below 0.8%. That is true.

But an oil can:

• be made from fermented or rotten olives
• contain residues from chemical farming
• come from dead, chemically treated soil
• be nutritionally poor

and still meet that legal requirement.

Acidity alone does not define quality. It only shows whether the oil passed a laboratory threshold.

What Real Artisanal Spanish Extra Virgin Olive Oil Looks Like

True artisanal olive oil follows a completely different rhythm.

It comes from groves where:

• olives are harvested with nets, not tractors
• olives never touch the ground
• the soil is alive and often green
• chemicals are avoided

Harvesting is slow and careful. Olives are treated as food, not as raw material.

They are pressed the same day or the next day, before fermentation can begin.

Because the olives are fresh and healthy, the oil does not need refining, correction, or blending. It can remain exactly as it is.

Why Artisanal Olive Oil Tastes Different Every Year

Real olive oil is a natural product. Weather changes. Rain changes. Harvest timing changes.

That is why artisanal olive oil:

• tastes different each year
• can be bitter or peppery
• feels alive instead of flat

Uniform taste year after year is not a sign of quality. It is a sign of heavy control.

Variation means the oil comes from real trees, real land, and real decisions.

Why This Is Rarely Explained

None of this information fits on a label.

You will not read:

• how olives were harvested
• how long they lay on the ground
• whether chemicals were used on the land
• how quickly the olives were pressed

So people assume that Spanish olive oil or cooperativa olive oil equals quality.

In reality, quality is not about geography or structure.
It is about what happens on the land, day by day.

Choosing Olive Oil With Open Eyes

Artisanal Spanish extra virgin olive oil is not about luxury or trends. It is about respect — for the land, the olives, and the people who consume the oil.

If you want to choose better olive oil, ask simple questions:

• How are the olives harvested?
• Do they touch the ground?
• How fast are they pressed?
• Is variation accepted from year to year?

When these answers are clear, quality becomes visible — without marketing and without confusion.

That clarity is what separates farm-direct, small-batch olive oil from most of what fills supermarket shelves.

These were really good days.
Days we needed.

After a long and intense harvest season, spending time outside together with the volunteers felt grounding.
Offroad driving through the mountains, a challenging hike, laughing a lot, moving our bodies, being present.

Those moments mattered.
They helped clear my head.

Lately, I’ve been spending most of my days behind the computer — building the website, preparing everything to be able to offer our olive oil to you. Good work, necessary work, but very much in my head.

These days in the mountains were the balance I needed.
Exactly that pause, that reset.

Being able to step outside like this, so close to where we live, reminds me how grateful I am to have these mountains around us.
To share them. To breathe. To come back with a clearer mind.

That’s all this post is.
Just something from the heart.

Our harvest days usually start at sunrise and go on until sunset.
Early mornings, full days outside, moving from tree to tree, loading nets, filling crates, driving back and forth. It’s physical work, but it never feels heavy when you’re doing it together.

Different people helped out at different moments.
Some stayed longer, some joined for a few days, some dropped by whenever they could. Everyone just jumped in and did what needed doing that day.

Between the work, there was a lot of laughing.
Jokes between the trees, silly moments, shared breaks, music here and there. Those are the things you don’t plan, but that make the long days fly by.

These photos show a bit of that.
Not just olives and nets, but people in motion — working, talking, joking, being part of the day.

The harvest is finished now, but these moments stay.
And honestly… this is exactly how we like doing things here.

After harvesting, loading the trailer, and tying everything down, we drove out with the olives — dusty hands, tired bodies, but a good feeling. I always love that moment: leaving the land and knowing what’s coming next.

At the press, it never gets old.
Seeing the olives go in…
Waiting…
And then watching the first oil appear.

It’s such a simple process, really.
Harvest. Drive. Press.
And suddenly, there it is — our oil.

These days repeat themselves during the season, each time a little different, each time familiar. It’s not rushed, not forced. Just moving along with the harvest as it unfolds.

This video is a small glimpse of that journey — from the trees to the press, and everything in between.

From early morning until it gets dark, we’re outside working.
Nets under the trees, olives in buckets, the trailer slowly filling up. It’s the same rhythm every day.

It’s hard work. You feel it in your body.
You’re dusty, in the sun all day, tired by the evening. But it feels right.

Every two and a half days, we bring the olives to the press.
Each trip feels like: ok, this part is done. Moving forward.

These are only the first harvest days.
There’s still a lot ahead of us.

We’re doing this together with family, friends, and volunteers.
Everyone helps where they can. We work, we talk, we laugh. Sometimes we’re exhausted, but we do it together.

Now we’re taking two days of rest.
After that, it’s back to the fields again.

There are weeks of harvest ahead, but we’re ready.

If you want to join the next harvest days at Finca Almalibra, you’re welcome.
You help with the olives, and you see what life here is really like.

We can harvest the olives on his land!

The trees haven’t been maintained for a long time, so before the harvest we’re carefully bringing them back to shape. We’re removing all the chupones (suckers) so the trees can breathe again and the nets can be placed properly .

The real pruning will come later, between February and April, following the natural rhythm of the trees. Slow, respectful pruning — allowing them to regain their strength, balance, and beauty.

We’re deeply grateful for this generous gesture
As a thank-you, we’ll gift him some of our olive oil — a small but heartfelt way to return the kindness.

We’ve already spent two full days preparing the land and the trees, and the energy out there feels incredible.

Do you have olive trees you’d like us to harvest?
Or would you love to join and help during the harvest?

Send us a message
Let’s make this season one of abundance, connection, and purpose

She wanted to explore Park Güell — soaking up all the colors and curves — and of course, we had to visit the biggest shopping mall in Catalunya .

So much joy.
So much laughter.
And that simple, precious feeling of just being together .

A perfect little mother–daughter adventure, right before our reunion

What’s your favorite place to spend a fun day in Barcelona?

Our shed is moving fast — cob climbing up the walls, beams taking shape — thanks to a new volunteer who’s incredibly handy with wood. And guess who’s back? A returning guest from last year… instant click with the crew. The guys have turned into a proper dream team — and last night even ended with karaoke under the stars .

We’ve also welcomed a tiny heart-stealer: Stitchy
Our Stitch-inspired kitten, who now officially owns every lap on the finca.

Proud-mom moment: my daughter, almost 14, is learning to ride the motorbike — only here on our land, nice and safe — and her smile says absolutely everything .

A special shout-out to Ahmed, who moved from Morocco to Roquetes for his daughter’s health and still finds time to come by several times a week to volunteer. Kind souls like his build more than walls — they build community .

We even escaped for a quick reset at a hidden mountain water spot — because finca life is also about pausing, breathing, and cooling off.

Busy, joyful, muddy, musical — life here feels full.
And the finca (and family) just keeps growing

We’ve welcomed a new guest — a carpenter (lucky us!), which means some long-awaited progress:
the shed is finally getting its roof!

While precise measurements and wooden beams take shape, the rest of us are busy sifting soil like true treasure hunters —
except instead of gold, we’re uncovering the perfect mix for cob .

Step by step, the shed is coming together.
Built slowly.
Built by hand.
With lots of teamwork, shared effort, and plenty of laughter along the way

This is how things grow here — not rushed, but rooted in cooperation and care.

Why walk across the finca with a bag when you can cruise around in style?
So the tractor quickly transformed into a carob-collecting taxi .

Definitely not our usual finca principles…
but absolutely one of those spontaneous moments that turn into unforgettable finca memories

Because life on the land isn’t only about doing things “the right way” —
it’s also about laughter, creativity, and enjoying the ride