Primum Oleum Extra virgin olive oil in luxury gift box

Pons Primum Oleum is much more to us than simply a special olive oil. De Olijfolie Shop has been importing this Catalan classic for more than twenty years. On this page you can choose between the 500 ml bottle and the spectacular 1.5-litre Magnum.

Some products come and go. Pons Primum Oleum stayed. We have been importing this oil from Catalonia for more than twenty years and during that time it has become part of the history of De Olijfolie Shop itself.

Over those twenty years we have discovered many exceptional olive oils. The standard has continued to rise. Yet Primum Oleum has retained something that is difficult to express in scores or medals: emotion. The bottle, the packaging, the family story and that extremely early harvest make it instantly recognisable.

The original story behind Primum Oleum is as simple as it is beautiful. Grandfather Pons and his grandson made it a tradition to walk among the olive trees together in October, looking for the very first olives ready to be picked.

Rather than waiting for maximum yield, the choice was to harvest early for freshness, intensity and character. The first oil of the new season became something to look forward to each year – almost an annual ritual. Primum Oleum: literally, the first oil.

The Arbequina olives for Primum Oleum are harvested very early in October. They grow on the terraces of the family estate in L’Albagés, Lleida, at around 500 metres above sea level. Limestone-rich soils and a pronounced continental climate help shape the character of the fruit.

Harvesting early means deliberately accepting a lower oil yield per kilogram of olives. In return comes pronounced freshness, green aromas and a higher concentration of naturally occurring phenolic compounds than when the fruit is allowed to fully ripen.

One of those presentations you really have to see in person

Choosing the 1.5-litre version means choosing more than simply a larger quantity. On a screen you can see that the bottle is big. Only when you actually hold the Magnum do you understand why this edition has made such an impression for so many years. The scale, dark bottle and luxury gift box give Primum Oleum almost the character of a collector’s item.

Fortunately it is no museum piece. Inside is exactly the same Primum Oleum, made to be opened, placed on the table and shared with others.

The Pons family estate lies near L’Albagés in the province of Lleida, in western Catalonia. The Arbequina trees grow on terraces at around 500 metres above sea level, on limestone-rich soils and under the influence of a continental climate. The Pons family has produced olive oil here for generations, and Primum Oleum is made from the first green Arbequina olives of the new harvest.