Last February, the oil mills of Alpes-Maritimes opened their doors to all those passionate about olive growing. This event, organized by the Interprofessional Union of Nice Olives, the Chamber of Agriculture of Alpes Maritimes, the mills, and the olive oil cooperatives of Alpes-Maritimes, allowed people to discover the expertise of the millers and the flavor of the olive oil. But, how is olive oil actually made?
Naively, little Enzo responds: “You buy it in a bottle at Auchan.” Yes, these days the supermarket does everything for kids from fries to cakes. But let’s not dwell on the nostalgia of the good old days. That’s not the question today.
For educational purposes, Nice-Première took little Enzo on the trail of olive oil. The fruit that gives us our famous oil with known benefits is, of course, the olive. This treasure is offered by the olive tree, a legendary tree, in November, December, January, or February, depending on the town where it is planted.
First step: Olive picking. The elders used a stick and shook the olive tree. Shaking? I mean shaking the branches to make the olives and also leaves fall. Then, it’s necessary to sort by removing everything that does not resemble the fruit of the olive tree either by hand or using a machine made with the hands of our ancestors.
Once a certain number of olives are gathered, we can move on to the second step.
Second step: Heading to the mill. In our valley, there are very few mills called “old-fashioned,” as opposed to recent mills. Nice-Première focused on the one in Drap, a village in the heights of Nice. In this mill from the 17th century, about a hundred die-hards continue to crush their olives with stone millstones to extract artisanal oil not allowed for sale.
André Malano, the miller, welcomed us to his slippery threshold and shared his knowledge, or rather, should I say, his passion.
When the olives arrive at the mill, André weighs the crop to choose the millstone, either the 150 kg or the 300 kg one (from this first weighing, we can determine the liter of oil that we will collect, counting about 5 kg for 1 liter).
Let’s leave the floor to André, master of ceremonies at this mill.
“After weighing the olives, they are placed on the track where they are crushed until a homogeneous paste is obtained. The track is then filled with water, allowing the lighter oil to rise to the surface. This oil extraction method is specific to Genoese-type mills.
Then, with the help of a heather broom, the oil is collected at one corner along with some of the pulp. Everything is then scooped up with a pan and placed in a stainless steel cylinder positioned above a collection basin. The oil is then filtered again using a centrifuge which removes all impurities.
We obtain a first press oil. Then comes the final phase: cleaning all the equipment. One of the other peculiarities of Genoese mills: the crushed pits are used as fuel for the hot water and heating necessary for the mill’s operation.
At Drap, as in nearly all Genoese mills, people participate in making their own oil. Everyone brings their own snack, sharing their meal. It’s convivial. This atmosphere is not found in modern mills.”
Unfortunately, there are fewer and fewer adherents to this tradition. People do not want to get their hands dirty, they bring their olives to the modern mill and a few hours later they come back to collect them in liquid form.
Fortunately, there are people like André Malano or like Yves Lessatini, the president of the olive oil cooperative, who revalue the so-called “old-fashioned” mill.
“Thank you, André. Today, I learned many things thanks to you,” concludes little Enzo.
After the educational minutes, we had time for tasting minutes. After all, you must taste this liquid gold. At the entrance of the mill, the dishes from our valley tell stories of the past: pissaladière, little stuffed vegetables, olives… The best: soubrossaïde, olive oil on still warm grilled bread. A real treat! Not to forget a nice chilled local wine to refresh us, to be consumed of course in moderation! Little Enzo was allowed to moisten his lips with this grape juice, just as my grandfather used to do.
“Tell me, Nice-Première, is wine made in a mill too?”
“No, little Enzo, that’s a different system. But for wine-making, we’ll ask you to wait a bit because the grape season is in the fall.”
