Our story

Once upon a time, in a Sicilian village called Buccheri,
our ancestor Vito Spanò bought a tiny piece
of land called “Riunta” as a present for his 9 children.
It was the end of the 19th century and...
the beginning of our Story.

Lavinia was our mother’s name,
Vito, our father's,
Vico Rosella n°1 is our home.

For four generations we have produced olive oil.
With love we answer the call the olive trees ask of us.

During cold winter mornings, hand picking the olives, one feels the unexpected presence of generations before us working silently by our side.
The fragrances of the land and the passing of time while paying attention to the voices of those in the past, to whom this land belonged to.
Reminiscing, about the tiny figure of our ancestor Ciccio returning to his village with his old donkey, walking by his side, home to his wife Vincenza and to refurbish his supplies.
Listening to our grandfather Gaetano’s stories, of immigrating to Philadelphia and returning home. Buying “Vernera” was the outcome of the money earned building roads In America.
To taste the black olives our grandmother Grazia would roast in the ash and we would eat with warm bread.
To listen to the laughter, of the tales and the family anecdotes told to us by Aunt Giovanna and Uncle Pippo while, traveling in their Fiat 600, taking us
to the countryside, for long walks amongst the trees.
To see our mother’s fascinated face once more, when, at “The Tallarita”, the highest peak of the property oversaw the immense valley below her.
With her children years before, and with her faithful dog Nick beside her, spent many hours searching for chicory, wild fennel and borragine, in Vernera’s fields.
And then our father Vito, captivated by the olive groves, would inspect each and every tree like a good physician that he was. At the kitchen table, after dinner, he hand selected the problem olives to search for a resolution.
He passed on his love and respect for the land to us.
Now, the fifth generation is ready: Giuseppe, Vito 1 and Vito 2 will be our future.

The land.
It’s origins.
Our home.

Producing olive oil means not breaking tradition.
No end to a story.
Just a beginning.
Now, the fifth generation is ready:
Giuseppe, Vito 1 and Vito 2 will be our future.

So, if we wanna talk about oil, let's start from that.
Cause all the rest, really, is a consequence.

Where we are

We are situated on the Iblei Mountains, in Buccheri, on Monte Lauro, an ancient Vulcan. Our lands are in the magical archaeological site of St. Andrew, between a necropolis and a Templars’ Gothic Church, where, for thousands of years, olive trees reign uncontested, finding both fertile soil and ideal climate for their holy fruits. Our century-old organic olive groves are located on hills, on 70 hectares grounds and in several lands: Vernèra, Sant’Andrea, Tallarita, Zocco, Mazzarino, Mascarone, Maddalena, Frassino, Travana. They produce Tonda Iblea olives, our typical cultivar.

How we work

Since 5 generations, we pick olives in the first day of October and we continue throughout November. We pick olives only by hand and we press them that same day after two hours in an olive oil mill which works on 2 phases continuous process, cold pressing and with very short pressing times, in order to obtain only first pressure organic extra-virgin olive oil. The oil is then put in steel containers, saturated with nitrogen and put in a controlled temperature room in order to maintain unchanged the chemical, organoleptic and sensory characteristics of the oils.

It is important to know that…

Dear Customer,
the product you have chosen is an high quality and organic extra virgin olive oil. It is a DOP oil (protected denomination of origin) protected by the Consortium DOP Monti Iblei. It is obtained by 100% Sicilian Tonda Iblea olives. It is produced following traditional techniques: the olives are handpicked and immediately cold pressed in a two phases continuous cycle mill in order to preserve the chemical, organoleptic and sensory characteristics of the extra virgin olive oil which is immediately stored in steel containers and saturated with nitrogen. The containers are placed in a controlled temperature room until bottling. Since it is completely natural, our extra virgin olive oil is influenced by climatic factors such as temperature range, rain, humidity. This is the reason why the balance between bitter and spicy, the intensity of flavor, the fragrance, are subjected to variations from one year to another.

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Depending on the weather variables the oil can be part of Intense or Medium Fruity category, but it will maintain the characteristic scents of Tonda Iblea olives: tomato, artichoke, green grass, and sometimes almonds. So these differences mean High Quality, and absence of any sophistication. This is the reason why since 1984 our extra virgin olive oils win every year both national and international prizes, they are present in the most important olive oil guides and is part of Slow Food olive oil selections. So, please, take care of it keeping it away from light, heat and temperature changes.
Thank you for choosing us and enjoy it!

News

Palmares

Our extra-virgin olive oils have won several prestigious national and international prizes. Here are some of the most recent:

2020 | 2021

– Le forme dell’olio 2022 – Concorso internazionale di Packaging e Innovazione – Premio Platino, Gourmet con confezione
– Le forme dell’olio 2022 – Concorso internazionale di Packaging e Innovazione – Premio Platino, Linea commerciale gourmet con confezione
– Le forme dell’olio 2022 – Concorso internazionale di Packaging e Innovazione – Premi speciali, Immagine coordinata
– Gold Award in Dubai Olive Oil Competition
– Special Mention Impresa Donna
– Amphora Olearia Special Prize at the Ercole Olivario 2021 Competition
– Gold Medal at the New York International Olive Oil Competition
– Extragold Medal at Biol 2021
– Slow Oil in the Slow Food Guide 2021 for Le Case di Lavinia
– Best in Class in the DOP category at the Japan Olive Oil Contest
– Golden Lion: Selection for Le Case di Lavinia
– Biolnovello 2020: Best EVO Oil of the new season 2020, extragold Medal for Le case di Lavinia

2019 | 2020

– Biolnovello 2019: extragold Medal for Le case di Lavinia and Le Terre di Vito
– Le Forme dell’Olio: Best Packaging best message and third prize Gourm Retail for Vico Rosella n. 1 – Limited Edition
– Leone d’Oro: Selection for Le Case di Lavinia and Vico Rosella n. 1
– Biol 2020: Extragold Medal for Le Case di Lavinia and Le Terre di Vito
– Los Angeles International Olive Oil Competition: Bronze Medal for Le Case di Lavinia
– Los Angeles International Olive Oil Competition: bronze medal for best packaging for Le Case di Lavinia
– Slow Food: Great Oils selection for Le Case di Lavinia and Le Terre di Vito
– Assam Monovarietal Oils: certificate of excellence for Le Case di Lavinia
– New York International Olive Oil Competition: Gold Medal for Le Case di Lavinia
– AIPO: 3 drops of gold for Le Case di Lavinia
– International Olive Oil Contest: Gold Medal for Le Case di Lavinia
– Orciolo d’Oro: Grand Mention for Le Case di Lavinia and Distinction for Le Terre di Vito
– Japan Olive Oil Prize: Gold Medal for Le Case di Lavinia
– Orciolo d’Oro: Special Mention best packaging for Vico Rosella n. 1
– Armonia: Grand Mention for Le Case di Lavinia

2018 | 2019

– Honourable Mention at the Olio Officina Festival’s “Le Forme dell’Olio” competition for Vico Rosella n. 1;
– Silver Medal at the Biolnovello Competition 2018 for Le Case di Lavinia;
– Silver Medal at the Biolnovello Competition 2018 for Le Terre di Vito;
– Selection of the best extra virgin olive oils in the world of the Leone d’Oro dei Mastri Oleari for Le Case di Lavinia;
– Finalist in the Ercole Olivario competition for Le Case di Lavinia;
– Three Leaves in the  Oli d’Italia Guide 2019 by Gambero Rosso for Le Case di Lavinia;
– First place and 3 drops at the AIPO d’Argento Competition, Category Monovarietal for Le Case di Lavinia;
– Second place and 3 drops at the AIPO d’Argento Competition, EVOO TOP WINNERS category for Le Case di Lavinia;
– Second place and 3 drops at the AIPO d’Argento Competition, Organic Category, for Le Terre di Vito;
– Second Place in the L’Orciolo d’Oro Competition, Intense Fruity Category for Le Case di Lavinia;
– Gold Medal, DOP Category at JOOP 2019 (Japan Olive Oil Competition) for Le Case di Lavinia;
– Sixth place out of 20 in the Dissapore rankings, for Vico Rosella n. 1
– Slow Oil in the Slow Food Guide for Le Terre di Vito;
– Gold Medal at the Los Angeles International Olive Oil Competition for Le Case di Lavinia;
– Gold Medal at the L.A. International Olive Oil Competition, “Packaging Design” category for Le Case di Lavinia;
– Gold Medal at NYIOOC (New York International Olive Oil Competition) for Le Case di Lavinia.

2017 | 2018

– Biol Extra-Gold Medal in the BiolNovello Competition 2017 to Le Case di Lavinia;
– Biol Extra-Gold Medal in the BiolNovello 2017 Competition to Le Terre di Vito:
– Olio Officina Festival in Milano: First Prize to Le Terre di Vito – “Shelf Oils’ Category”;
– Olio Officina Festival in Milano: Second Prize to Le Case di Lavinia –“Shelf Oils’Category”;
– Olio Officina Festival in Milano: Third Prize to Le Terre di Vito – “Best Labels Category”;
– Olio Officina Festival in Milano: Forth Prize to Le Case di Lavinia –“Best Labels Category”;
– “Maestro D’Olio” in the “Terre d’Olio Guide 2018” for Le Terre di Vito and Le Case di Lavinia;
– Silver Medal to Le Case di Lavinia, in the Los Angeles International Olive Oil Competition;
– Finalists in the “Olio Capitale” Competition with both Le Case di Lavinia and Le Terre di Vito;
– Silver Medal in “SOL Packaging” Competition to Le Terre di Vito;
– Great Mention to Le Case di Lavinia in the “Orciolo d’Oro” Competition;
– Great Mention to Le Terre di Vito in the “Orciolo d’Oro Competition”;
– Top 100 Oils to Le Case di Lavinia in the “Evooleum” Competition in Spain;
– Forth Position in the “Dissapore Top 20” for Le Case di Lavinia and Le Terre di Vito;
– Extra Quality Certificate to Le Case di Lavinia in the “Il Magnifico” Competition;
– Second Prize in the “DOP Middle Fruity Category” for Le Case di Lavinia at the “AIPO d’Argento” Competition;
– Second Prize in the “100% Italian Middle Fruity Category”, for Le Terre di Vito at the “AIPO d’argento” Competition;
– “3 Gold Drops” to Le Case di Lavinia, DOP/IGP Category, at the “AIPO d’Argento” Competition;
– “3 Gold Drops” to Le Case di Lavinia, Organic Category, in the “AIPO d’Argento” Competition;
– “3 Gold Drops” to Le Case di Lavinia, Monovarietal Category, in the “AIPO d’Argento” Competition;
– “3 Gold Drops” to Le Case di Lavinia, Italian Category, in the “AIPO d’Argento” Competition;
– “3 Gold Drops” to Le Terre di Vito, 100% Italian Category, in the “AIPO d’Argento” Competition;
– “3 Gold Drops” to Le Terre di Vito, Organic Category, at. the “AIPO d’Argento” Competition;
– “1 Heart” to Le Case di Lavinia in the Merum Guide 2018;
– “1 Heart” to Le Terre di Vito in the Merum Guide 2018;
– “Honorable Mantion” to Le Case di Lavinia in the “Sirena d’Oro di Sorrento” Competition;
– Extragold Medal to Le Case di Lavinia in the “Biol 2018” Competition;
– Extragold Medal to Le Terre di Vito in the “Biol 2018” Competition;
– Gold Medal in the Japan Olive Oil Prize to Le Case di Lavinia;
– Gold Medal in the New York International Olive Oil Competition to Le Case di Lavinia;
– “Unique Award Leone d’Oro Packaging”, to Le Terre di Vito in the “Leone d’Oro dei Mastri Oleari” Competition;
– “Great Mention”, Organic Oils Category, to Le Case di Lavinia, in the “Leone d’Oro dei Mastri Oleari” Competition.

2016 | 2017

– Finalist in the XXV edition of “Ercole Olivario 2017” Competition;
– Extra.Gold Medal in the “BIOL 2017” International Competition;
– Distinction in the “L’Orciolo d’Oro 2017” Competition;
– Selected to represent Italy at the International Culinary Center, in Campbell, California;
– Selected to represent Italy at “Truly Italian” events, in Santa Monica;
– Silver Medal at the “Los Angeles International Olive Oil Competition”;
– Certificate of excellence in the exhibition of the “Single Variety Oils” of Assam;
– Heart “it excites us” on the Slow food on-line guide 2017.

2015 | 2016

– Biol 2016 Gold Medal;
– “L’Orciolo d’Oro” 2016 Gran Menzione;
– Chosen for the catalogue “Your Gate to Sicilian Excellence” published by Unioncamere Sicilia;
– Present in “Terre d’Olio 2016” as “Maestro d’Olio”;
– Chosen by Presidio Slow Food as “L’Olio del Presidio”.

2014 | 2015

– 3 Olives in 2015 Gambero Rosso guide;
– Buonolio Salus Festival = 1° prize, “Intense Fruity section”;
– Orciolo d’Oro = “Gran Menzione”;
– L’Oro d’Italia = 2° prize, “Intense Fruity section”;
– L’Oro d’Italia = 1° Special Prize DOP Monti Iblei, Sotto-zona Monte Lauro;
– L’Oro del Mediterraneo = 2° prize “Intense Fruity section”;
– Morgantinon Prize = Morgantinon d’Oro;
– Premio Morgantinon = 1° prize “DOP Monti Iblei Section”;
– We have been choosen to represent Sicily in Los Angeles and London at the Center of Italian Culture;
– Expo Sicily Città dell’Olio = 3rd prize in “Intense Fruity section”.

2013 | 2014

– 1° prize at “Ercole Olivario” 2007 Competition;
– 1° prize at “L’Orciolo d’Oro” 2007 Competition, “DOP Intense Fruity Section”;
– 1° prize at “Ercole Olivario” 2008 Competition; “DOP Intense Fruity Section”;
– 1° prize at “L’Orciolo d’Oro” 2013 Competition, “DOP Intense Fruity Section”;
– 1° prize at “Morgantinum” 2013 Competition, “Intense Fruity Section”;
– 1° prize at “Morgantinum” 2013 Competition, “DOP Monti Iblei” Section”;
– “Gran Menzione” at “Leone d’Oro dei Mastri Oleari” 2013 Competition;
– 1° prize at the 10th Oil Competition “Aipo d’Argento 2013”, “Medium Fruity section”;
– “Diploma d’Onore con Punzone d’Argento”, “Medium Fruity Section”, at “Aipo d’Argento” 2014 Competition;
– “Diploma di Distinzione” at “Orciolo d’Oro” 2014 Competition.

We are present in the following guides

Slow Food
Flos Olei
Gambero Rosso
Assam, Oli Monovarietali
Terre d’Olio
Merum, Germania
Der Feinschmecker, Germania