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Monday, March 3, 2014

Flavors of Lonato Extra Virgin Organic Biological Method Pitted Olive Oil Highly Recommended by the Olive Oil Enthused Peachy's Pantry Panel of Whom You Know!

Olive oil is probably one of the healthiest oils you can consume. Even better, it tastes great to cook with or even all on its own! To really appreciate its wonderful flavors, however, you must try a superior product. Flavors of Lonato produces such a product. Their Extra Virgin Organic Biological Method Pitted Olive Oil has a fantastic flavor that is unlike any other I have tried. It is light and fruity, and it has a lovely, smooth texture. This is probably because they use the best quality olives and cold press them within four hours of harvesting! I love drizzling the oil over some olives and eating them as snack. It's delicious!
Olive oil has become increasingly trendy in American cooking, thanks, in part, to the rise of celebrity chefs and all of the popular cooking shows on t.v. However, just because something is labeled "extra virgin olive oil," it doesn't mean that you're getting a product that's made according to the rigorous standards set for extra virgin olive oil. Large, commercial companies mass-produce olive oil, but unfortunately, the quality suffers. However, thanks to Flavors of Lonato, there is an easy and reliable way to obtain great-tasting, top-notch quality olive oil! Flavors of Lonato focuses on importing high-quality norther Italian food products to the United States, and once you taste them, you'll never want to go back to the mass-produced brands found in supermarkets! Their Extra Virgin Organic Biological Method Pitted Olive Oil is absolutely delightful. I used it to make a caprese salad, and was extremely impressed with the delicate yet full flavor. Highly enjoyable and highly versatile, this product will definitely have a regular spot in my pantry going forward!
Great Olive Oil brings out the best of any fresh salad—and chopped tomato salad especially. Start with some perfectly ripe tomatoes (on the vine or heirloom are always a great choice). Dice them up, not too small, and add some salt and chopped fresh basil. The last step is the olive oil and my choice is Calvino’s Gocce di Casaliva Extra Virgin Biologically Pitted Olive Oil. It’s greenish—golden complexion just screams out freshness. The oil both coats and mixes with the natural juices of the tomatoes to form a dressing you won’t be able to stop yourself from dipping bread into. Biologically Pitted olive oil is both flavorful and light and works wonderfully with vinegar over a fresh lettuce salad as well. Calvino Olive Oil is Mediterranean freshness in a bottle.
Every kitchen needs a good olive oil, and this Extra Virgin Organic Biological Method Pitted olive oil fits the bill perfectly. When you use olive oil in almost everything you cook, it’s great to have an organic option, and this one is delicious. For dinner the other evening, I used this fantastic olive oil for all ingredients of the meal. I prepped some chicken breast with the olive oil and Italian seasonings, resulting in tender meat, with just the right amount of flavor. Next was sautéed mushrooms, with olive oil and garlic, which turned out amazing. It was all served over pasta, mixed with a dash of this olive oil. Keep this organic olive oil handy because you, too, will be using it over and over!

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Flavors of Lonato del Garda was started by two very dear friends, each on the opposite side of the great pond. As the world has transformed from what we know as round, separated only by distance and culture, these friends took an idea to bring a small part of Italian culture with its rich history and passion for healthy cooking to a world that is now flat. With trust and determination, this friendship over the years inspired the idea which you now see before you: “Flavors of Lonato.” Our idea, a little taste of Northern Italian fare, is represented by the finest products from the small villages exclusive to the Garda region of Italy. This region is known for the exceptional high quality of products produced by small family owned growers with over a millennium of expertise that has been passed down from generation to generation. “Flavors of Lonato” now proudly brings this rich historic culture to the US consumer for all to enjoy!

Is it possible that we have brought food down to the lowest common denominator? Much of our food is processed, pasteurized and homogenized until it becomes bland and indistinguishable. Many of us have come to accept mediocrity, telling ourselves these products are “good enough” because that’s all we have come to know. But when you’ve tasted food created from an artist’s own hands, made with patience and love, with all of it’s complexities and cultural identity intact, good enough is no longer part of our vocabulary. Great food makes life worth living, even if it is just for the sweet taste of grapes, a bite of cheese that is so good there are no words to describe it. Balsamic vinegars that have been lovingly created and aged for 25 years or a piece of freshly baked bread dipped into a fresh press olive oil. Great food brings people together to share the experience of a region, culture and the lives of those who thoughtfully grew it. Good enough can never do that, and Flavors of Lonato del Garda, Inc. (“FLG”) never accepts “good enough”. In recent years, a controversy has been arising regarding the labeling of food items as a “Product of Italy” or substandard olive oil as “Extra Virgin”. When a product is labeled as a “Product of Italy”, most people assume that this means the product was grown, processed, packaged and shipped from Italy but the product itself could have been purchased anywhere and shipped to Italy for processing. By the same token, if a label of olive oil reads “Extra Virgin” it does not mean that it has been processed and prepared according to the strict guidelines established to ensure the quality that the label implies. FLG standards guarantee that our products are grown, processed, and shipped from Italy only and that they are of the highest quality and standard because “good enough” is not good enough!

About Our Featured Product:

Olive Oil: We currently have two lines of olive oil – our premium, organic line and our classic line. Our premium, organic line has been certified “organic” by the Italian government and is extra virgin. In order for olive oil to qualify as extra virgin, it must be cold pressed within 24 hours of harvesting. Our premium line of olive oil is cold pressed within 4 hours of harvesting which gives it a smoother, fresher, more robust taste. We have two varieties of premium olive oil – light and robusto. The robusto olive oil has been cold pressed with the pit intact. The light olive oil has been cold pressed after the pit has been removed. Our classic line of olive oil is DOP certified and is extra virgin (cold pressed within 24 hours of harvesting). 


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Flavors of Lonato del Garda, LLC acts as an importer and wholesaler of specialty products imported from the Garda region in Northern Italy. All of our products have either been certified as organic by the Italian government (a designation that is not easy to achieve) or have either a DOP or IGP certification. Each manufacturer is required to provide copies of certifications, safety inspections and audit results and keep a copy of a current certificate of insurance on file with our company. Our products include balsamic vinegars, balsamic vinegar creams, liquid salts, apple vinegars, flavored vinegars, Italian roast coffee and quality olive oils. More information about Flavors of Lonato can be found at www.flavorsoflonato.com




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