WELCOME TO PORTUGAL
Welcome to Douro
For millenniums, the olive tree has characterised Portugal. The quality of olive oil is mostly influenced by the many attributes of the region where it is produced. A unique climate and the quality of the soil directly affect the characteristics of the olive tree exactly in the same way as vine in vineyards.
​
In Portugal you can find 8 main regions that produce high quality Olive Oil, but one of them is very specific, the Douro region, the home of Azeite Da Vila.
​
Azeite Da Vila is coming from North of Portugal, from the region with centuries of traditions, the region with unique landscapes and specific climate, from the region called Douro. This area of Northern Portugal is characteristic with very warm summers and cold winters which affect the soil and gives special characteristics to each olive tree and their fruits.
​
Our Extra Virgin Olive Oil is made with traditional methods by using cold pressing. We pay attention to harvest olive fruit in the right moment, we carefully select them to ensure the typical taste, aroma and low acidity which is very important for Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
​
One of our main values is to not harm nature around us. That’s why we are proud to say that we keep all production processes as environment friendly as possible, including carefully choosing the material for our labeling.
History of Portuguese Olive Oil
Olive trees have been around for many thousands of years with a long history dating back to ancient civilizations. They are among the oldest known cultivated trees in the world. In Portugal, olive trees as “Oliveiras” have been farmed for a long time since the Visigoths and later by the Arabs. They produced the “az-zait” that means “olive juice” in the southern regions of Portugal.
​
However it was the religious orders in the Middle Ages that paid a special attention to the production of the olive oil. In an attempt to improve its characteristics, it has been transformed and adapted by man, throughout the ages, in order to obtain the tree nowadays known as Olea Europea L. The “Oliveira” is a medium-sized tree, very resistant to drought and its roots can reach 6 meters.
​
There are several varieties of olives, that will produce different types of olive oils, with different colors, aromas and flavors. The most used ones in Portugal, among others, are the Galega (in the south) and the Cobrançosa (in the north).
