There is a wide range of flavors found in extra virgin olive oils. Flavors are determined by several factors including type of olives, ripeness of olives, growing conditions, and oil storage. The following pages will help you to learn how to taste olive oil and how to recognize the differences between good and defective flavors. We cover how to host a tasting party, tasting advice from Nancy Ash, one of the foremost expert in olive oil tasting, tasting terms, and various organizations’ tasting evaluation sheets.