The Right Oil for Every Kitchen: San Giuliano Extra Virgin Olive Oil, from Unity Foods

The best cooking often comes down to a few great ingredients, prepared simply. And few ingredients do more quiet work than extra virgin olive oil.

Whether you run a restaurant, a food truck, or a catering kitchen, or you simply love feeding people well, the oil you reach for touches nearly everything you make. That's why it should never be an afterthought, and why Unity Foods brings San Giuliano extra virgin olive oils to kitchens across the Pacific Northwest.

Excellence from Olives, Since 1916

San Giuliano's story began in 1916 in Alghero, a coastal town on the Italian island of Sardinia, where the Manca family started growing olives and pressing oil. Four generations later, San Giuliano ranks #1 among Italian olive oil makers and #17 in the world (EVOO World Ranking, December 2024).

San Giuliano is both farmer and producer, so they oversee every step from grove to bottle. That means organic and regenerative farming, blockchain traceability, post-production upcycling, and Non-GMO Project verification.

Why a Great EVOO Matters

High-quality extra virgin olive oil doesn't just dress a salad; it awakens it. Like a conductor bringing an orchestra to life, it brings together ingredients that might otherwise pull apart: bitter radicchio and sweet stone fruit, nutty farro and bright citrus, creamy cannellini and peppery arugula. It adds its own fruity depth while amplifying each ingredient's character.

• It transforms raw ingredients into a composed dish.

• It adds texture, a silky richness that carries flavor in a way water-based dressings never can.

• It unifies, marrying earthy flavors with bright ones.

• It awakens aromas, releasing the fragrance of fresh herbs and taming raw edges without dulling them.

• It nourishes. The polyphenols and antioxidants behind that peppery finish are the same compounds that make EVOO a cornerstone of healthy eating.

In short, EVOO is to salads what butter is to French cuisine: not an addition, but the foundation.

Meet the Oils

One oil to cook with, one to finish with: that's the simple pairing that covers almost any kitchen.

Mediterraneo: Your Everyday EVOO

Cold-pressed from Ogliarola, Coratina, and Koroneiki olives grown in Italy and Greece, Mediterraneo is well- balanced and gently fruity. Expect floral aromatics, light spice, hints of almond, and ripe-olive notes. It's a flavorful staple for sautéing, frying, seasoning, baking, and drizzling, and it comes in a 3-liter tin.

Solare Fruttato: The Finishing Touch

When you want the oil to be noticed, reach for Solare Fruttato. It's rich in botanical depth, with herbaceous aromas, notes of olive leaf, wild grasses, and cardoon, a bright citrus lift, and a peppery finish. Featured in EVOOLEM's Top 100 Olive Oils in the World, it shines over soups, roasted meats and vegetables, and spiced dishes.

For Something Special: Primér Estate

Primér (pronounced "pruh-meer") means first: it's pressed from the earliest harvest. Look for tomato-vine aromatics, a luxurious balance of bitterness and spice, and a rich, buttery complexity. Named one of Italy's top extra virgin olive oils by Forbes Italy, it's made for drizzling over soft cheeses, prosciutto, fresh fruit, steamed fish, or steak.

Chef's Tips

A great finishing oil is the original secret sauce. Heat softens an oil's most delicate aromas, so the best place to taste a great EVOO is where it isn't hidden: a final drizzle just before serving. Added just before serving, it's often the first thing a guest smells and tastes, bringing aroma, fruitiness, and a pleasant peppery finish that cooking alone can't deliver.

Cook with one, finish with another. Use Mediterraneo for everyday cooking, then finish with Solare Fruttato or Primér Estate. Try it over grilled seafood, roasted vegetables, fresh pasta, soup, salads, burrata, bruschetta or warm focaccia.

Taste side by side. Pour a little of your current oil and a little San Giuliano into small cups. Warm each in your hand, smell it, then sip and notice the fruitiness, the bitterness on your tongue, and the peppery catch in your throat. A slice of apple or a sip of water clears your palate between tastes. Then try each on bread to see how it plays with food. The difference is in the finish.

Keep it fresh. Store olive oil away from heat and light, and keep the cap closed between uses, so it holds its flavor down to the last drop.

Bring San Giuliano to Your Kitchen

Choosing the right oil is one part of the equation; the people behind it matter too. Unity Foods works directly with chefs and food businesses to find products that fit their menus, budgets, and kitchens, from sourcing specialty ingredients to helping when menus or availability change.

Quality Italian olive oil, ready for everything from a weeknight sauté to the final drizzle. Contact your Unity Foods sales rep or call 503-683-1776 for samples and more information, or visit unityfoodspdx.com.