Tenuta del Barone di Montemurlo — Toscano PGI extra virgin olive oil from Tuscany
New harvest olive oil 2026
New harvest olive oil — olio nuovo, as Italians call it — is the oil of the first weeks after the harvest: green, bitter, peppery, at the peak of its aroma. What it is, when it comes out, how to use it and how long it keeps — and what ours is like: Toscano PGI extra virgin olive oil from the 2026 harvest in Montemurlo, Tuscany.
What new harvest olive oil is
Olio nuovo — “new oil” — is extra virgin olive oil fresh from the mill, in the first weeks after the harvest. It is not a legal category: it is what Italians call the oil of the season that has just begun, while it still has all the green, bitter and peppery character of fresh olives.
New oil is often slightly cloudy, because it is bottled soon after milling and still carries tiny particles of olive. Over the weeks they settle and the oil clears. That is not a fault: it is a sign the oil is only just made.
When the new oil comes out in Tuscany
On the Tuscan hills the harvest runs through October and November, earlier than in most of the Mediterranean, and the new oil comes out in the same weeks. November and December are the months of new-oil festivals and of fettunta: toasted bread rubbed with garlic and soaked in oil straight from the mill.
Our 2026 harvest is picked by hand, tree by tree, and the olives picked in the morning are milled the same afternoon, at a mill 870 metres from the grove.
The taste: why it catches in your throat
New oil from early-picked olives smells of cut grass, artichoke and green almond; it is bitter on the tongue and peppery in the throat. That peppery catch, which sometimes makes you cough, comes from polyphenols, which are at their highest in fresh oil.
Over the months the bitterness and pepper soften and the oil grows rounder. If you like intense oil, buy it new; if you prefer it mild, choose an oil from late in the harvest.
How to use it
Raw, always. On fettunta first of all, then on bean soups, ribollita, cooked greens, grilled meat, roast fish. A spoonful at the end is enough: an oil like this speaks for itself.
Don’t fry with new oil: heat takes away exactly what makes it special.
How long it keeps
Extra virgin olive oil does not go off overnight: it slowly loses aroma, bitterness and pepper. It is at its best in the first six months and keeps well until the date on the label, usually about eighteen months after bottling.
Keep it dark, cool and closed, away from the stove. It doesn’t need the fridge: cold makes it cloudy, and it clears again at room temperature with no harm done.
Shipping new oil abroad
Olive oil travels well as long as it is protected from heat and knocks. We ship from the estate in shock-proof packaging to the European Union, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, the United States and beyond.
Every country has its own shipping page with delivery times and costs, and the cart shows the exact figure for your address before you pay.
Our 2026 new oil
The same Frantoiano, Moraiolo and Leccino trees give two oils. Luce comes from the green olives at the start of the season: the most bitter and peppery, new oil at its purest. Raccolto comes from the main harvest in November: rounder, with sweet almond ahead of the artichoke.
Both are Toscano PGI extra virgin olive oil, from our own olives, grown and milled in Montemurlo, between Prato and Pistoia, with the harvest year on the label. You can reserve the whole year’s supply in the Harvest section.
What is olio nuovo?
Olio nuovo, “new oil”, is extra virgin olive oil from the first weeks after the harvest, fresh from the mill. It has the most aroma, bitterness and pepper of the year, and is often slightly cloudy because it is bottled soon after milling.
When does the 2026 new harvest olive oil come out?
In Tuscany olives are picked in October and November, and the new oil comes out in the same weeks. Our 2026 harvest oil can be reserved on the site and ships in November.
Why does new olive oil burn the throat?
Because of polyphenols, which are at their highest in fresh oil from early-picked olives. Pepper and bitterness are a good sign, and they soften over the months.
How long does new harvest olive oil last?
It is at its best in the first six months and keeps well until the date on the label, usually about eighteen months after bottling. Store it dark, cool and tightly closed.
Where can I buy olio nuovo from Tuscany direct from the producer?
From the people who grow the olives. Tenuta del Barone di Montemurlo sells its Toscano PGI extra virgin olive oil from the 2026 harvest at oliodelbarone.com and ships it from the estate to Europe, the US and worldwide.
Luce — Toscano PGI extra virgin olive oil from Tuscany