Huile d'olive de Provence

Huile d'olive de Provence is a virgin or extra-virgin olive oil produced exclusively by mechanical means within a delimited area of Provence. Its specification defines two distinct styles: a rapid-crush style and an «olives maturées» style, each with codified chemical and organoleptic thresholds. The four principal varieties — Aglandau, Bouteillan, Cayon, and Salonenque — must represent at least 80 % of identified orchards.

About this designation

Registered as a PDO on 28 May 2018 under file number PDO-FR-02421 (eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000016624), Huile d'olive de Provence covers virgin and extra-virgin olive oils obtained exclusively by mechanical processes within a delimited zone of Provence encompassing the departments of Bouches-du-Rhône, Var, Vaucluse, and Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, together with specified communes in adjacent departments, bounded to the south by the Mediterranean Sea and to the west by the Rhône. The specification requires that the four principal varieties — Aglandau, Bouteillan, Cayon, and Salonenque — be present at a minimum of 80 % in identified orchards, with Aglandau alone accounting for at least 30 %; a further group of permitted complementary varieties may represent no more than 20 %. The specification codifies two styles. The first, produced by crushing olives within fewer than 4 days of harvest, must show acidity of no more than 0.5 % oleic acid, bitterness and pungency medians each between 1.5 and 3.5, and aromas of fresh grass and/or raw artichoke. The second, labelled «olives maturées», results from crushing olives held between 4 and 10 days after harvest; it must show acidity between 0.4 and 1.5 % oleic acid, bitterness and pungency medians each no greater than 1, and aromas of black olives, candied fruit, undergrowth, and/or toasted bread. Extraction temperatures must remain below 30 °C throughout. All operations from olive production to oil elaboration must take place within the delimited geographical area.

Source: The register document this entry was written from · retrieved August 26, 2026

Distinctive facts

• Registered as a PDO on 28 May 2018 under file number PDO-FR-02421.
• Aglandau must represent at least 30 % of identified orchards; the four principal varieties together must reach at least 80 %.
• The specification defines two legally distinct styles: a rapid-crush style and an «olives maturées» style, each with separate acidity, bitterness, and pungency thresholds.
• Extraction must be carried out exclusively by mechanical means at temperatures below 30 °C throughout the entire process.

Tasting notes

Provençal regional EVOO AOP, blend of Provençal cultivars (Aglandau, Salonenque, Picholine, Bouteillan). Light-medium fruity intensity, balanced harmonious flavor with characteristic Provençal notes of artichoke, fresh almond, green herbs, light bitter-pungent finish.

HoReCa use

Drizzled on tapenade, ratatouille, tomates Provençales, grilled fish, and salade niçoise; used raw on fougasse and in pistou.

Packaging

• glass-bottle-250ml
• glass-bottle-500ml
• glass-bottle-750ml
• tin-3L
• tin-5L
• PET-canister-3L

Seasonality