The Olive Grove
4 Acres of Olive Grove in the North Salento Region of Puglia
200 trees with more than half being over 600 years old
Olive trees have been at the heart of Puglia forever
And in our family for the past five generations, with Alessandro’s grand-uncle having first having his own mill “frantoio”, then with Alessandro’s parents taking the olives to the local co-operative in the previous generation and now back to producing and selling our own extra virgin olive oil. Our olive grove counts some 200 trees across 10 acres, half of which are dating back to 15th century. Mostly consisting of the “Ogliarola” cultivar which is a “Collina di Brindisi” DOP, Denomination of Protected Origin, and the other half are Cellina di Nardò cultivar.
Distinctive Rich Red Earth
This distinctive rich red earth is typical for the region and gives the olives their unique taste
Organic Farming
From the north Salento of Puglia, the region is abounding with trees 500 – 1000 years old and of all shapes. The earth is deep red and full of energy. The locals take great care of their trees and are proud of their land and their oil.
In 2018 Golden Nectar changed its farming methods to organic farming, advised by our passionate agronomist, Raimondo. We want to go further though and get back to an even more sustainable farming by regenerating the earth with a variety of local wild flowers, putting some fantastic nutrients back where they belong. We and our lead farmer, Antonio, does not plow the land but rather mulch down the grass in late spring.
The health of the olives is being monitored carefully over the summer and natural methods are used to fend off the typical flies if they start to attack the olives.
Pruning is done every 3 or 4 years, according to the most advanced knowledge of sustainable farming developed over the many years of experience of our team.
Harvest and Production
Harvest typically starts in mid-October, depending on the season. Olives are harvested very carefully, by shaking the branches of trees so the olives drop onto nets. The olives are then right away taken to our trusted mill, where they are cold pressed through mechanical methods.
We aim to press the olives within 24 hours from harvest to keep the acidity as low as possible.
The poem that started it all*
“Ti amo, ulivo, grato agli Dei ed ancor più agli uomini.
Amo la tua pelle rugosa provata dal tempo,
Amo il tronco possente lacero di antiche ferite
la umbrifera chioma cangiante al cangiare dei venti
costretta a vita perenne priva del distogliamo riposo.
Amo le tue radici profonde che stuprano
questa rossa terra normanna avara di umori.
Ti guardo ed anch’io sono ulivo
nel corpo ferito, nel capo argentato,
nel desiderio fremente ormai di radicarmi alla terra
e di far frutto ancora ed ancora far dono di me.
Ti ascolto e l’argenteo stormir delle foglie tagliate dal vento
mi ricorda la musica del mare”
A Marcello, amico degli ulivi.
Ennio Masiello
*written by Ennio Masiello, well known lawyer, politician and ex-mayor of Brindisi, for Marcello Mele, Alessandro’s father, who loved these ancient olive trees – see translation
Meet the stakeholders
We are passionate about our olive oil and our land!
Alessandro
Entrepreneur
Alessandro is a serial entrepreneur, lives in Horsham with his family and is passionate about his Apulian roots. He took over Diddy’s Country, the estate where Golden Nectar is produced, in 2006 and loves learning about sustainable farming and sharing his passion for Golden Nectar with others!
Alexandra
Entrepreneur
Alexandra is Swiss and has become as passionate about Puglia and all it has to offer as Alessandro.
Raffaele
Young User
Raffaele spent most of his summers and other holidays around the grove, enjoying the freedom and the good food.
Lara
Young Animal Carer
Lara has been looking after our animals, mainly cats for many years, she is passionate about the call of nature when she is there, to the point that she becomes wild.
Raimondo
Agronomist
Our passionate agronomist Raimondo who is advising us on sustainability in olive oil farming.
Cristiana
Manager
Cristiana is part of the family, she looks after the house and the estate as if it would be her own. We all love her and she is also looking after our cat when we are not around.
Antonio
Farmer
Our Farmer Antonio manages the grove, he is very professional and treats our ancient trees with all the respect they are due.
Check out our luxury villa in the midst or our olive grove!
Built as a luxury mediterranean villa with 3 original rooms from the early 1900
Enjoy a luxury holiday with all amenities for up to 15 people
Contact us today
You can pick up your Golden Nectar order from our farm Diddy’s Country, our UK home in Horsham and our office in London Victoria. We can also ship anywhere in Europe and within the UK, please ask for quote stating your desired quantity per container.
Check out https://www.zestandzing.co.uk