Olive Presses Newly Installed in Southern and Central California

Four new Pieralisi olive oil presses have been installed in Central and Southern California to service the many olive trees sprouting up in that part of the state.  The presses are all state-of-the-art according to Lisa Deane of the Olive Oil Source, the U.S. representative for Pieralisi who oversaw the installations.  Astrid  Jansen at Foxdale Farm was making oil on her Fattoria model press from Italy within days of the installation. She has her own trees but is specifically looking to do contract pressing for the many olive producers and wineries in the central California area which are putting in olive trees. The press has a 2-phase integrated cold-press system that guarantees a larger yield than traditional presses. At the same time, it enhances the organoleptic qualities of the oil it produces. Astrid says her facility can handle loads of any size. Her new steel and concrete pressing facility is right outside Paso Robles in the center of California's mid-state wine area. The area a few hours south was the scene of the recent  movie "Sideways", which was about the wine industry.

Astrid Jansen of Foxdale Farms tasting first oil with friends and neighbors.

Astrid checking malaxation progress

Willow Creek also installed new equipment at their facility outside Paso Robles. See article below.

Just north of the Los Angeles basin is the beautiful and fertile Ojai Valley.  Many budding olive oil producers have put in trees.  Jeff Luttrell at La Dolce Villa has installed a new Pieralisi Fattoria system. Jeff is an eye surgeon when he is not growing olives and making olive oil.

Lisa Deane says the system can handle 350 - 500 kilos of olives per hour. Jeff is pressing olives from his own extensive orchards and may also do some public pressing. 

The beautiful Ojai Valley in Ventura County, Southern California

The Olive Oil Source also supervised installation of another private facility in the Stockton area this fall. The equipment was made by Pieralisi of Italy.

New Pasolivo Olive press installed for December 2005 Harvest

PASO ROBLES, CA – Visitors to Paso Robles’ Pasolivo Olive Oil Tasting Room on Vineyard Drive will now have the chance to tour one of the most current designs in olive presses in the United States. The Guth/Yaguda family’s new Pieralisi Major 2 press with the Panorama closed system for malaxation was imported from Italy. The press, which  was installed in late November, makes it possible to process up to a ton per hour, and gives olive oil producers the chance to press olive oil quickly, efficiently and of the highest quality.

Last year’s harvest at Pasolivo’s Willow Creek Olive Ranch was substantial enough that the family recognized it was time to step up to a bigger commercial press. Joshua Yaguda, owner Karen Guth’s son and the official olive oil miller, trekked to Italy, touring olive mill manufacturers in search of the right fit for the family’s olive ranch. “We have incredibly high standards for the olive oil we produce,” said Yaguda. ”We have been impressed by how beautifully the trees are doing here in Paso, and we wanted to make sure our new press could make an even higher quality of oil than what we’ve made up to this point. We’re confident this new press will keep our quality high and yet produce much more quickly and efficiently. The press fired up beautifully.”

The family intends to make oil for other producers in custom press projects, and also offers their press up once a year for friends and neighbors at their Community Press Day. The Community Press Day, held the Saturday after Thanksgiving, allows hobbyists and people with a few buckets to a few hundred pounds to have their oils pressed communally. This makes it possible for everyone to go home with a little olive oil. Rules for the free Community Press Day are posted at the family’s website, www.pasolivo.com. This year’s Community Press saw over 60 people from across the state bringing their fruit to Pasolivo, and was the first official press for the new Pieralisi.

Pasolivo, run by Guth and her son Joshua Yaguda and wife Joeli, produces estate pressed and bottled extra virgin olive oils on their ranch in Paso Robles, California. They have over 45 acres and 9000 trees, all planted specifically for olive oil production. Their olive oils have been featured in Food & Wine, The Wine Spectator, The Los Angeles Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, Newsweek and the Robb Report. For more information or to visit the family’s Willow Creek Olive Ranch, visit www.pasolivo.com or call 805-227-0186.

For more information contact:

Foxdale Farm
6850 Highway 41 East
Templeton, CA 93465
805-440-8959 cell
805-462-2250

La Dolce Villa / Ros Olio
283 Carne Rd
Ojai CA 93023
805-701-4145

Willow Creek Olive Ranch
Street 8530 Vineyard Dr.
Paso Robles CA 93446
805-227-0186