CHAP. 2.—THE NATURE OF THE OLIVE, AND OF NEW OLIVE OIL.
Fabianus maintains that the olive will grow1636 neither in very cold climates, nor yet in very hot ones. Virgil1637 has mentioned three varieties of the olive, the orchites,1638 the radius,1639 and the posia;1640 and says that they require no raking or pruning, nor, in fact, any attention whatever. There is no doubt that in the case of these plants, soil and climate are the things of primary importance; but still, it is usual to prune them at the same time as the vine, and they are improved by lopping between them every here and there. The gathering of the olive follows that of the grape, and there is even a greater degree of skill required in preparing1641 oil than in making wine; for the very same olives will frequently give quite different results. The first oil of all, produced from the raw1642 olive before it has begun to ripen, is considered preferable to all the others in flavour; in this kind, too, the first1643 droppings of the press are the most esteemed, diminishing gradually in goodness and value; and this, whether the wicker-work1644 basket is used in making it, or whether, following the more recent plan, the pulp is put in a stick strainer, with narrow spikes and interstices.1645 The riper the berry, the more unctuous the juice, and the less agreeable the taste.1646 To obtain a result both abundant and of excellent flavour, the best time to gather it is when the berry is just on the point of turning black. In this state it is called “druppa” by us, by the Greeks, “drypetis.”
In addition to these distinctions, it is of importance to observe whether the berry ripens in the press or while on the branch; whether the tree has been watered, or whether the fruit has been nurtured solely by its own juices, and has imbibed nothing else but the dews of heaven.