Peek into your kitchen pantry and you’ll likely find a bottle of olive oil. This gold-to-green-hued oil ispacked with compoundsthat support heart health and healthy aging, may protect against certain cancers and more. It’s also incredibly versatile, finding itself at home indips,dressings,cakesand more. But is that olive oil in your pantry a good one? To find out, we asked an expert for tips on buying the best bottle of olive oil. Plus one of those experts, a real-deal olive oil sommelier, shares tips for how to taste olive oil properly.

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Wait, There Are Olive Oil Sommeliers?

How to Plan Your Own Olive Oil Tasting

Choose Your Bottles

Bono recommends looking for bottles that have certifications like Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) or Protected Geographic Indication (PGI), which ensures quality. Alternatively, look for oils that are entirely from one country (100% Spanish, for instance) which will allow you to really differentiate the flavor profiles from one country to another. Look for a harvest date on the bottle—olive oil starts to degrade within a year of the olives' harvest, so choose one that’s been harvested within the last year. Also, look for oils sold in tinted bottles that protect them from light, which can cause the oil inside to degrade more quickly.

For your tasting, you’ll want to choose a theme, which can be broad or narrow. You could choose bottles that come from a single country, like Italy or Greece. Or maybe the goal is to test a variety of oils from different countries. In either scenario, Bono suggests choosing at least three bottles so that you can compare the similarities and differences among nations or even regions within one country.

Set Up the Tasting

Here’s how Bono recommends setting up an olive oil tasting:

5 Steps for Properly Tasting Olive Oil

Bottom Line

All olive oils are not the same, that’s why tasting them is a great idea. Channel your inner olive oil sommelier, grab your wineglasses, and get swirling, sniffing and slurping. Invite friends and make it a party. Then have fun creating delicious food using your new favorite varieties.

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