Gold Medal Winner for 2007 at the Los Angeles County Fair's Olive Oils of the World Competition, currently the most prestigious of its kind in the United States.

Gold Medal Winner at the 2006 and 2007 Yolo County Fair
Gold Medal Winner at the 2006 and 2007 San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival

THE KATZ STORY
Our culinary lineage spans the last 30 years. It began when we opened a restaurant in the San Francisco Bay Area, at a time when cooking local, seasonal, farm-fresh foods was in its infancy. This was a vibrant and creative period and we spent that first decade "behind the kitchen line" learning that the quality of the ingredients makes all the difference.

Later down the road as we created those ingredients, our mission became simple: to produce genuine and authentic foods with integrity and in a traditional manner that nurtures the soul and satisfies the palate.

ABOUT THE PRODUCT
Katz Rock Hill Ranch Organically Produced Using Sustainable Farming
All of the fruit for our Katz Rock Hill Ranch EVO is grown in the Suisun Valley, bordered on its northwestern flank by the Napa Valley. This historic, active agricultural region since the 19th century is a recognized appellation for wine grapes. Here lies Rock Hill Ranch with soils that are loamy…full of sand and clay…an ideal mix for growing olives. The hills surrounding the valley are full of compacted volcanic ash called tuff or tuffo, in Italian. These are the same soil conditions that the Tuscans claim are responsible for making it the "best" region for growing olives (a claim we can now make for the Suisun Valley!).

As of January 1, 2008, Rock Hill Ranch is CCOF Certified Organic. We are proud to have made this commitment as it fulfills our long time support of organic farming. All of our olives are handpicked and taken to an olive mill operated by a Jesuit Monk who has made it his "mission" to mill the best oils under the most pristine conditions. A two-phase press is used without any additional heat (often some heat in the form of hot water is used to increase yields), thus making all of our oils cold-pressed in the truest sense of the word.

Katz Rock Hill Ranch EVO contains the following olive varieties:
Taggiasca and Casaliva…65% of the blend, these varieties, which are native to the Ligurian and Lombardy regions of Italy respectively, are grown on our Rock Hill Ranch in the Suisun Valley. Both of these varieties are known for their soft and persistent fruitiness with sweet overtones producing a lush mouth feel.
Leccino…35% of the blend, this Tuscan cultivar is grown near-by our Rock Hill Ranch and gives the oil its green hue and classic grassiness and herbaceousness.

ABOUT THE TASTE
Our 2007 oil is a very low .19 free fatty acid and a 5.2 peroxide reading. All of the olives were harvested from October 28 until November 14, 2007. Hand harvested and bottled unfiltered; the oil has an expansive nose of artichoke, almonds and herbs with a lush mouth feel and a pleasant and pungent finish. A worthy successor to last year’s three-time gold medal winner, it compliments simple fish, poultry and vegetable dishes, or use it to liven up a risotto with wild mushrooms or polenta with braised greens, or make a bold fruity dressing for arugula or spinach salads…be inspired!

This oil proudly bears the California Olive Oil Council’s Certified Extra Virgin Seal - Your assurance that this is an Authentic, high-quality, 100% California extra virgin olive oil.