Above 35°C (95°F)
Cooked and heavy
Too much heat can dull the fresh fruit aroma. The oil often tastes flatter and greasier, with a cooked note and little of the lively peppery finish.
HOW THE OIL IS MADE
Seed oils such as canola, sunflower, and soybean are often extracted with heat and solvents, then refined.
Extra virgin olive oil is different. It is extracted only by mechanical force.
“Single cold pressed” means the olive paste is pressed once, at a controlled low temperature, with no second extraction and no chemical solvents.
After pressing, many large producers push the oil through tight paper filters to make it look clear very quickly.
That extra handling can take away some of the fresh aroma.
We let the oil rest instead. In dark, cool stainless-steel tanks, the tiny fruit particles settle on their own over time. That is natural gravity decantation.
The simple rule:
Think of it like fresh orange juice.
If you heat the fruit or force the juice through heavy filters, some of the fresh flavor is lost.
Cold-pressed, naturally settled oil keeps more of its aroma and character.
TEMPERATURE AND FILTRATION
How hot the press is — and how the oil is cleared — changes the taste. Cooler extraction and gentle settling usually keep more freshness. Higher heat and heavy filtering can make the oil taste flatter.
Above 35°C (95°F)
Too much heat can dull the fresh fruit aroma. The oil often tastes flatter and greasier, with a cooked note and little of the lively peppery finish.
27°C cold pressed
This is the usual legal limit for “cold” extraction. When the oil is also forced through tight paper filters, it looks very clear, but some of the fresh herbal aroma and texture can be reduced.
Below 22°C (71.6°F), our craft method
Pressed cooler and left to settle naturally. The taste is closer to freshly crushed green olives, with a gentle bitterness and a smooth, clean finish.
PRESSING TEMPERATURE
The temperature at the mill changes how much fresh aroma the oil keeps. Lower heat is gentler. Higher heat can make the oil taste flatter.
01 · In the grove
18–20°C
Morning-picked olives are still naturally cool when they arrive from the trees.
02 · Our mill
Below 22°C
The paste is milled once in a cold-water jacketed press, so the oil stays cool and keeps more of its fresh green character.
03 · Legal “cold pressed” limit
27°C
This is the usual maximum temperature allowed for a “cold pressed” label.
04 · Hotter bulk milling
Above 35°C
Some large mills use higher heat to squeeze out more liquid. That extra heat can dull the fresh aroma.
BIOCHEMICAL EXTRACTION STUDIES
How a cool single press and slow settling help keep extra virgin olive oil fresh and aromatic.
Fresh aroma
The smells of cut grass, tomato leaf, and green artichoke come from delicate aroma compounds. These fade more easily when the paste gets too warm. Pressing below 22°C helps keep more of that fresh, green character in the oil.
Natural settling
Tight paper filters and high pump pressure can push the oil clear very fast, but some of the natural fruit particles and aroma can be reduced along the way. Gravity decantation is slower. The heavier particles settle on their own over time, so the oil clears without being forced through tight filter pads.
Freshness in the lab
Crushing the olives with as little air and heat as possible helps limit early oxidation. This keeps peroxide values low, a standard lab sign of chemical freshness.

NATURAL GRAVITY RACKING
Dark Temperature-Controlled Tanks: Freshly pressed oil rests in 16°C sealed stainless tanks under a protective nitrogen blanket.
Natural Sediment Settling:: Gravity gently draws heavy olive fruit pulp down to the cone bottom over 3 to 4 weeks.
Gentle Racking:: Clear, nutrient-dense oil is racked off the top into dark UV-protective glass bottles—pure, unfiltered, and unstripped.
Zero paper pads. Zero mechanical pump stress. 100% natural gravity.
Olives go from grove to extraction within 2 hours, helping preserve their natural freshness, aroma, and polyphenols.
Dark glass helps protect the oil from light, preserving its freshness, flavor, and quality over time.
Free acidity of ≤0.2% reflects exceptional olive quality and careful handling from harvest to extraction.
RAW FRUIT PURITY
Extracted once under 22°C without heat or solvents, then naturally decanted by gravity. Delivers untouched bioactive strength and pristine culinary integrity.

EXTRACTION REGULATORY NOTE (IOC & EU REGULATION NO 29/2012)
'Cold pressed' historically refers to traditional hydraulic presses using mat filters, while 'cold extracted' refers to modern closed continuous stainless steel centrifuges (decanters). Under EU Regulation 29/2012, both terms require extraction temperatures strictly below 27°C (80.6°F) without chemical solvents.
Extraction temperature directly determines nutrient and aroma preservation. Temperatures above 25°C cause volatile aromatic terpenes to evaporate and accelerate oxidation of sensitive polyphenols like Oleocanthal. Extracting strictly under 22°C locks in raw fruit biophenols, vibrant chlorophyll, and fresh grassy aromatics.
Natural gravity decantation is a traditional finishing method where freshly pressed, cloudy olive oil rests in dark stainless steel tanks under an inert nitrogen blanket for several weeks. Natural gravity gently pulls heavy olive sediment to the bottom, avoiding the mechanical stripping associated with paper filters.
Natural gravity decanted olive oil preserves microscopic suspended fruit biophenols and delicate volatile aroma compounds that industrial cellulose paper filters strip away. Proper gravity decantation removes excess moisture while retaining rich culinary mouthfeel, raw flavor depth, and peak antioxidant potency.
No. True extra virgin olive oil is strictly the product of the first mechanical extraction. Residual pomace from the first press contains negligible oil that can only be extracted industrially using chemical solvents (like hexane) and extreme heat, creating low-grade refined 'pomace olive oil'.
Juicy Olive extracts its organic olive oils strictly below 22°C (71.6°F), significantly colder than the official 27°C European legal ceiling. This strict temperature threshold minimizes friction heat in the malaxer to ensure 100% enzyme and antioxidant stability.
Commercial supermarket brands use high-pressure cellulose paper filters because they make cloudy oil artificially clear in under 60 seconds, speeding up mass packaging logistics. However, paper filtration strips out subtle cloud phenolics and reduces flavor complexity compared to patient gravity settling.
Unfiltered decanted olive oil should be stored in dark, UV-protective glass bottles or stainless steel containers in a cool, dark pantry between 14°C and 18°C (57–64°F). Keep the cap tightly sealed after each use to protect the raw, living oil from oxygen exposure.