[Tenuta del Barone di Montemurlo](https://www.oliodelbarone.com/en) — Toscano PGI extra virgin olive oil from Tuscany # Olive oil best before date: what does it actually mean The date on an olive oil bottle is not an expiry date like the one on milk or meat. It is a 'best before' date: the point up to which the producer guarantees the oil's flavour and quality, if stored properly. After that date, the oil does not become unsafe. It simply loses quality, slowly. ## What the label actually says Extra virgin olive oil does not carry a strict 'use by' date the way fresh food does. Instead, producers are required to print a 'best before' date, often worded 'best before end of'. This is a quality guarantee, not a safety limit: it means that up to that date, the oil should keep its declared aroma, taste and properties, if stored correctly. Past that date, the oil is still safe to eat. Nobody gets ill from using it. What happens instead is a natural, gradual process: the oil ages, much like wine or coffee, only more slowly. ## What really changes after the best before date Extra virgin olive oil is a living product. It contains natural polyphenols and antioxidants that reduce over time, through exposure to oxygen, light and heat. As it ages, flavour flattens out, and the bitterness and pepperiness typical of a young oil fade. A rancid note can appear if the bottle has been exposed to light or warmth. The best before date, usually eighteen to twenty-four months from bottling, is a cautious estimate based on correct storage: kept dark, away from heat, bottle tightly closed. An oil stored badly ages faster than the printed date suggests; one stored well can remain good well beyond it. ## Why harvest date matters more than best before Anyone wanting to know how 'fresh' an oil really is should look at the harvest date, where it is given, rather than the best before date. An oil pressed straight after harvest has the highest level of polyphenols and aroma it will ever have: from that point on, however well it is stored, quality can only go down, never up. This is why, in Tuscany, and in our case, the olives are picked between October and November and milled the same day. The shorter the gap between picking and pressing, the higher the starting point of the oil, and the later its decline begins. ## How to tell if an oil is still good The simplest way is to smell and taste it. An oil past its best loses bitterness and pepperiness, tastes flat, and can smell of mould, wet wood or rancid fat. An oil still in good condition has a sharp, green or artichoke-like aroma, and leaves a peppery catch at the back of the throat. No tasting qualification is needed to notice the difference: comparing a young oil against an old one makes it obvious straight away. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is it safe to use olive oil after the best before date? Yes. Extra virgin olive oil past its best before date is not dangerous, it simply loses quality: aroma, flavour and some of its natural compounds fade with time. ### How long does unopened extra virgin olive oil last? Typically eighteen to twenty-four months from bottling, if stored in a dark, cool place. The real shelf life depends on storage conditions: light and heat shorten it considerably. ### Why is olive oil's best before date different from milk's? Because extra virgin olive oil does not spoil quickly or dangerously the way fresh food does. Regulations use 'best before' wording precisely because the change is a gradual loss of quality, not a health risk. ### Should I check the harvest date or the best before date? The harvest date, when available, tells you far more. It marks the point from which the oil begins to age. An oil milled right after picking always starts from a higher point of quality, regardless of the printed best before date. ## Our oil, from tree to bottle Two 100% Italian extra virgin olive oils from Tuscany, from a single hand-picked harvest, milled the same day three minutes from the grove. Luce is green, bitter and peppery; Raccolto is round, for every day. We ship across Italy, Europe and worldwide. [Luce](https://www.oliodelbarone.com/en/oil/luce) [Raccolto](https://www.oliodelbarone.com/en/oil/raccolto) [The estate journal](https://www.oliodelbarone.com/en/journal) [All oils](https://www.oliodelbarone.com/en)