The Estates

The main estate, covered with hundreds of olive trees, extends to the gates of the city of Nice.
The brand's various olive oils come from here, including the most widely distributed "Cailletier", the symbol of the city. They are all the result of pure manual labor. On the terraced mountain slopes there is always something to do. Alziari has been using organic farming for years, because when dealing with trees that live for over a hundred years, one cannot help but think of future generations. Thus, every single tree is tended with great love and attention. Two periods are of particular importance for the development and cultivation of the olive tree:
First is the pruning, the so-called “élagage”, which determines the harvest of the following year. This pruning takes place after the harvest, between February and April, and requires patience and great skill, but above all, a lot of experience. By the way, fruit-bearing olive trees are pruned differently than purely ornamental trees. Their growth is stopped at a maximum height of 4.5 meters, and the inner branches are cut back to let as much sunlight as possible into the interior of the tree. The resulting shape – the so-called “gobelet” shape (goblet shape) – ensures sufficient ventilation inside the tree, which prevents the typical diseases that otherwise easily spread in a humid climate.
At Alziari, a professionally carried out pruning by one employee is estimated to take about one hour per tree, which means a colossal amount of work.
The second important step is the harvest, which takes place from November to March, depending on the ripeness of the fruit. The Niçoise olive is harvested when it is “tournante”, that is, halfway between unripe and ripe.
Cultivation on the Restanques, i.e., the terraced slopes, poses some difficulties: For example, tractors cannot be used, as they are not suitable for working on steep slopes.
Before the olives are ripe, nets are stretched under the trees, covering the entire cultivation area, which categorically excludes the use of any vehicles or machinery.

After a year of work and meticulous care focused on the olives, not a single fruit may now be lost. With the help of the nets, it is possible to catch the already ripe olives that gradually fall from the tree. The nets also ensure that the fruit does not come into direct contact with the ground, so that it is well ventilated and no heat builds up on the ground that could damage the olives.
The trees are now inspected daily to time the perfect moment for the harvest.
Then begins the work of the so-called "gaulage", in which the branches are “brushed out” with rakes to bring the remaining olives into the nets. While working on, under, and even on top of the trees, the “pickers” carefully ensure that they do not crush any fruit. As soon as all the olives have been removed from the tree, the nets are quickly collected, because now the sorting of leaves and other unwanted debris can begin. This selection is also done by hand. Every olive is examined individually, and only the truly flawless specimens are selected: those that have a beautiful oval shape and are full of oil.
The olives are then immediately transported to the oil mill, or pickled in brine for 6 months – depending on whether they are to be processed into oil or later consumed as aperitif olives.

The Mill

The last still active mill in Nice is owned by the Alziari family. Here, a very old-fashioned model can be seen, in which exclusively the same techniques are still used as at the time of its construction in 1868. Its operation is very special and works as follows:

The “Moulin Génois”

1. The healthy and ripe olives are brought to the mill as quickly as possible to avoid damage to the fruit. Here they are sorted, weighed, and finally placed in a stone vat.
2. A stone millstone of larger or smaller size rotates in a similarly stone vat. The millstones are mounted decentrally along the axis of rotation. This not only crushes the olives, but the pulp is kneaded so thoroughly that the so-called vacuoles/organelles, the fat cells of the pulp, burst. This is a very gentle method, as it excludes any kind of overheating and the associated risks. When finally a fine and creamy paste, the pomace, has been created, the liquids are separated from each other, the oil and the water, the plant fibers from the pulp and the pits.
3. The Génoiser method
   In the in-house mill, a very special method of oil extraction is used. In this almost extinct, so-called “génoiser” method, the stone vats are filled with water, so that the oil can settle out and deposit on the surface (with a density of 0.916, it has a lower density than water). At the same time, the remaining pulp and skin, which both still contain a relatively high proportion of oil, are also loosened from the pits, which remain at the bottom of the vat. Now the pulp and the oil can be skimmed off with the help of a long-handled perforated pan. Through the holes, the miller now lets as much of the water drain off as possible before filling the oil and the pulp into another container. The already separated oil is now immediately skimmed off with another “pan” without holes.
4. The Press
   Now it is time to extract the oil that is still in the pomace. Nothing is better suited for this than the so-called “press”. In the old génoiser mills, the pomace is placed in flat, round baskets that resemble a Basque beret, the so-called "scourtins". These are stacked under a press with a continuous screw and sprayed with warm water to accelerate the extraction of the oil. The oil owes its designation “Cold-pressed from the first pressing” to this step. Despite their considerable age, the mill still produces a very acceptable yield, which can hold its own against many modern mills. The only disadvantages are the more laborious handling and the more time-consuming pressing process.
5. The Olive Pits
   In crushed form, the olive pits resemble a coarse-grained powder that is called “grignon”. This “grignon” is collected in containers, in which it can dry out completely for a year. In this dry form, it serves as fuel, with which the entire mill is heated using a special oven.
6. The Olive Pulp
   The pressed pulp of the olives is used as a natural fertilizer for the olive trees.

The Vintage Oils

At the beginning of the 20th century, Nicolas Alziari realized that if he wanted to stand out from his many competitors, he had to offer some of his discerning customers even finer olive oils. This, however, presented him with a great challenge, because in the region around Nice, only one variety of olive is grown, namely the olive called “cailletier” or also “caillette”. He therefore could not offer too large a selection. Everything focused on this very small, very special olive, the “petite Niçoise”, which produces an exceptionally fine oil.
Nicolas Alziari therefore decided to make some of his vintages into very special, noble drops and began to explore the various techniques that are used in such cases in other gastronomic fields.
He was particularly interested in the world of wine and champagne. In doing so, he realized that by combining different (grape) varieties, one can on the one hand produce extraordinary results with remarkable flavor, and on the other hand offer the customer an almost identical product every year. In his exploration of other culinary spheres, such as coffee, chocolate, tea … he also realized that every fruit is adapted to its environment, that is, to a very specific soil composition and a very specific climate. It therefore did not seem sensible to Nicolas Alziari to grow varieties from other growing regions on his land, but rather to obtain them from where they grow and where they can develop best.
He began his “campaign” in Champagne and eventually crossed all of Europe in search of rare olive varieties, in order to create his finest vintages. This process took years and required a unique skill, but the result is exceptional assemblages that have since formed the worldwide fame of the House of Alziari.

What makes Alziari so special?

The House of Alziari relies on the methods of the great winegrowers and their rich treasure of centuries-old know-how in the production of olive oil. This also includes the fact that olive oil is never considered a simple cooking fat, but always a high-quality product. As an essential component of Mediterranean cuisine, it refines every dish. What would be a festive meal accompanied by an inferior wine? Undoubtedly, a rather mediocre experience…
This may seem obvious to you now, but until recently, the only task of most manufacturers was to bring their olives to the mill, press them, bottle the oil, and sell the product – completely regardless of the quality of the respective harvest.
The House of Alziari has always known how to add something to this simple process: selection. Selection first concerns the fruit and then the careful oil extraction itself, when after the press the oil is skimmed off to obtain exceptional vintages.
This is what makes Alziari so special: the offer does not simply consist of production – rather, all energy is used to offer the customer a unique yet unchanging flavor, which will be able to be tasted among many oils – and that from year to year.