Specialist scientists have already completed the necessary file in order to be submitted to the Ministry of Rural Development and the European Union
The special Mytilene olive, the “Mytilene stump olive” is on its way to designation as a Product of Designation of Origin (PDO). Already, the necessary file has been completed by the specialists of the Agricultural University of Athens Dionysios Pavlopoulos and Serko Haroutunian and as the responsible deputy regional governor for primary production of the North Aegean Region says speaking to APE-MPE Anastasia Antonelli “will be submitted to the Ministry of Rural Development and the European Union to designate the local olive variety ‘Colovi olive of Lesvos’ as a PDO product”.
The edible fruits of this variety have a special characteristic profile and are easy to distinguish from the fruits of other olive varieties. The fruit, which is green and when ripe turns into a dark black-red, is small to medium in size, with a thin skin and an oval or spherical shape and its main characteristic is the hollow end and the presence of a nipple or spike. Thus, the olive stumps look like acorns, as a result of which they are also called by the locals as balanolies.
The fruit is harvested manually, i.e. with the traditional picking (by hand) or with the help of manual (or mechanical) sticks. Thus, the presence of a smaller amount of chlorophyll is observed in the harvested fruit, with the consequence that it has a longer shelf life and is free from soil or injuries that degrade its quality.
The olive oil from the olive stump is packaged in extra virgin olive oil, an excellent quality product that has been designated as “Mytilini Oil / Product of Geographical Indication (PGI)”.
As for the edible olives that are requested to be designated as a PDO product, they are traditionally pitted and fermented / preserved in brine with sea salt from the salt flats of the demarcated area, without any additional processing. A positive consequence is the production of a product with as little processing as possible. In some cases, the brine is also enriched with aromatic plants of the island with the aim of bringing out the strong aroma and taste of the olive.
According to the traditions of Mytilene, depending on the desired final product, the following methods of processing the product under designation as PDO are followed:
– Pastes or Xiralates: The very ripe (black) “stump olive of Mytilene” is de-bittered with sea water of the demarcated area until the summer without any additional intervention, provided that the water is changed every two weeks. Then it is placed in straw baskets by alternately putting a layer of olives and a layer of salt from the salt pans of Lesvos, until the basket is covered. They cover with the “baski” a piece of wood that covers the surface of the basket and a heavy stone is placed on top, so that the olives ferment and expel a large part of their moisture. Fermentation lasts from six to nine months.
– Harakoti: The ripe (black) “stump of the Mytilene olive” is carved with a knife and de-bittered like pastes. It is then placed in a brine of salt from the island’s salt pans, enriched with aromatic plants such as basil, lavender, sage, mint, thyme, thrombi, rosemary and oregano of Lesvos, which is famous for its smell and taste. Also, the brine can be enriched with extra virgin olive oil. This is followed by the fermentation process which lasts six to nine months.
– Nerulia: It is prepared in exactly the same way as the engraving process, without the step of carving the wrist.
– Punchers (or Clastades): The green “olive stump of Mytilene”, after the harvest is crushed with the help of a stone. It follows the same pickling process as before and is then placed in brine with salt from the island’s salt pans, which may have been enriched with pieces of lemon, rosemary or fennel, while local extra virgin olive oil may also be added. This is followed by the fermentation process which lasts one to two months.
– Vinegars (applies to the purple-purple ones, neither the green nor the black ones): A selection is made on the largest olives, which are placed in bottles. Citric acid (sour), salt, water and vinegar are added to them. The bottle is then sealed from November until Easter.
– Big Black Dialects: First, the olives are carved with a knife. Then they are placed in a glass of water, which must be changed daily for 30 – 40 days so that they become bitter. When this is achieved, they are added to lime water (we melt clean lime and after it crystallizes, we take its water) for twenty-four hours. Finally, they are rinsed and placed in brine until consumed.
It should be noted that in order to properly preserve the “stump olive of Mytilene”, it is absolutely necessary to pack it in classic glass jars or in plastic packaging that is approved for use in food, either in a vacuum or in extra virgin olive oil of Mytilene . All stages of production, processing, processing and packaging of the PDO product with the name “Mytilene stump olive” must be carried out within the demarcated geographical production area.
“Limiting the packaging within the geographical area is deemed necessary in order to ensure the quality of the “Mytilini stump olive” product, to ensure more effective control of the origin of the final product and to preserve its excellent reputation,” emphasizes Ms. Antonelli.
The file includes the research completed by the Agricultural University with which the North Aegean Region collaborates, and which demonstrates the traditional as well as the organoleptic elements that justify the PDO designation of the Lesvos stump olive.
“The professor of the Agricultural University, Serko Haratounian, who is also the vice-president of the World Food Organization, last week gave details about this claim in a press conference with the participation of the deputy regional governor of the primary sector,” says Mrs. Antonelli. And he concludes: “The Northern Aegean Region entered into a programming contract with the Agricultural University. Initially, the investigation concerned three products, but then, it was decided to examine a series of products from the islands and if they gather the characteristics to claim the PDO-PGI designation. So, after the file was drawn up for the Kallonis sardine of Lesvos, the Meli Anamma of Ikaria, the Anhydro tomato of Chios, whose files have already been submitted and the approval of the European Union is awaited, it was the turn of the “olive stump of Mytilene” to claim the designation Denomination of Origin Product’.
Source: Skai
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