Monti Iblei

Monti Iblei is a PDO extra virgin olive oil produced within the provinces of Syracuse, Ragusa and Catania in Sicily. The designation is reserved for oil meeting defined chemical and organoleptic standards, obtained principally from olive varieties including Tonda Iblea, Moresca, Nocellara Etnea, Verdese, Biancolilla and Zaituna grown within the delimited area.

About this designation

Registered as a PDO under file number PDO-IT-1521, Monti Iblei is an extra virgin olive oil whose production area covers olive-growing municipalities within the provinces of Syracuse, Ragusa and Catania in Sicily. All stages of production — cultivation, harvesting and oil extraction — must take place within this identified geographical area, and the oil must also be packaged there. The permitted olive varieties are Tonda Iblea, Moresca, Nocellara Etnea, Verdese, Biancolilla and Zaituna and their synonyms, which must account for at least 80 % of the oil. The specification sets maximum acidity of 0,5 % expressed as oleic acid, maximum peroxides of 12 mEq O₂/kg, K232 ≤ 2,5, K270 ≤ 0,22, total polyphenols ≥ 120 ppm, and Delta-K ≤ 0,01. Organoleptic assessment requires a median of zero for any defects. The oil must be placed on the market in containers of no more than 5 l. The designation may be accompanied by one of eight sub-area place names — Monte Lauro, Val d'Anapo, Val Tellaro, Frigintini, Gulfi, Valle dell'Irminio, Calatino and Trigona-Pancali — though use of a sub-area name is not obligatory. Adjectives such as 'fine', 'scelto', 'selezionato' or 'superiore' are expressly forbidden on the label. The applicant body is the Consorzio di Tutela dell'olio extravergine d'oliva Monti Iblei, based at Ragusa's Chamber of Commerce.

Source: The register document this entry was written from · retrieved August 28, 2026

Distinctive facts

• Registered as a PDO on 25 November 1997 under file number PDO-IT-1521; eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000013399.
• The permitted olive varieties — Tonda Iblea, Moresca, Nocellara Etnea, Verdese, Biancolilla and Zaituna — must together account for at least 80 % of the oil.
• Use of one of eight named sub-area place names on the label is permitted but, following the 2018 amendment application, no longer obligatory.
• Maximum permitted acidity is 0,5 % expressed as oleic acid, and total polyphenols must be at least 120 ppm.

Tasting notes

Sicilian EVOO from Iblei mountains (Ragusa-Siracusa), predominantly Tonda Iblea, Moresca, Nocellara Etnea. Robust intense fruity profile, pronounced bitter-pungent finish, distinctive notes of green tomato, fresh-cut grass, mint, almond — among Italy's most highly-rated DOP oils.

HoReCa use

Finishing oil on Sicilian premium preparations including red prawns of Mazara and tuna tartare; used raw on Cassata-region cheeses and with pasta alla Norma.

Packaging

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

Seasonality