Germany discovers Catalan olive oils

Catalan olive oils continue on tour. Last January the first of the guided tastings in Germany was held in Cologne, run by Prodeca with the collaboration of the Catalan Government Delegation to Germany. The second tasting took place on 22 May, in Hamburg. 

The restaurant Kleine Brunnenstrasse was the venue for this second tasting. The event brought together some twenty professionals from agri-food and gastronomy distribution, purchasing managers, restaurateurs and the specialist press, who discovered the excellence of Catalan olive oil, its uses and Catalonia as a producing region. 

Olive oil expert and sommelier Carmen Sánchez led the tasting. A specialist in marketing in the German market, she sits on the jury of various international olive oil competitions. Andreas Steinwandt, chef and owner of the restaurant Kleine Brunnenstrasse 1 joined her in guiding guests through olive oil's different flavours. He writes for the well-known food magazine Feinschmecker as a champion of olive oil and its uses in cooking. 

This second tasting featured up to 15 Catalan olive oils from different Catalan PDOs, whether in the sensory tasting, the food tasting or the exhibition area. The event aimed to promote olive oil companies in the German market and explain Catalonia's particular, distinguishing characteristics: varieties, designations of origin and sensory assessment of the different extra virgin olive oil categories.

The different uses of olive oil by quality and variety were shown through a culinary demonstration by German chef Andreas Steinwandt. Each dish used a different oil chosen for that preparation and adapted to German consumers.

Guests were able to taste a kohlrabi carpaccio with Amalfi lemon, spring herbs and torn burrata with Terrall de Sant Isidre's arbequina oil; fried scallops with almonds, parsley and banana, with EDÓ's arbequina oil; roast cauliflower and raw cacao with L'Olivera's arbequina; and orange cake with green olives and an olive oil sorbet and buttermilk, with Kylatt's oil.