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Gonnelli 1585 is a company steeped in history and heritage, with a passion for producing top of the range extra virgin olive oils. As far back as 1585 the Gonnelli family bought the farm of Santa Téa and the nearby oil mill which was built in 1426. The three brothers Francesco, Lorenzo and Giulio, sons of Taddeo di Michele di Lorenzo, bought the Podere di Santa Téa for 300 coins from the Friars of the Convent of the Carmine of Florence. After the purchase of the farm the art of olive growing and oil production was passed down from generation to generation.
The philosophy has always been to offer a healthy, natural product, which Gonnelli has made achievable by closely controlling every phase of the production. To do this the latest technological innovations are applied wherever possible. In 1962 the first centrifugal plant in the world was installed in Santa Téa in collaboration with Alfa Laval, a record that involved a significant breakthrough in olive oil production systems, substantially improving the quality and purity of the product. Also the "Monocultivar" line represents a great innovation succeeding in distinguishing the flavours to obtain Extra Virgin Olive Oil coming from the pressing of olives of a single variety. In the 1980s, to protect products from counterfeits, Gonnelli Srl first adopted the dosing / non refillable cap, created in collaboration with Guala Closures. The Gonnelli company in 2007 was also the first oil mill in Europe, to obtain ISO 22005 certification for traceability, guaranteeing the possibility for its consumers to trace the history of each bottle and the origin of the olives that compose it.
In order to keep the oils at their peak, Gonnelli have set up a production and storage system which excludes oxygen by adding nitrogen. This helps to preserve the maximum freshness of the oil, as if it has just been produced, avoiding oxidation and locking in the oil’s organoleptic characteristics. It is only when the oil bottle is opened that the oxidation process begins.
It’s not just the technology that is important, however, and in the quest for premium quality, great care is taken in managing the olive grove, which has expanded rapidly over the years. Today it has 43,000 plants of varying cultivars, located in the Tuscan territory, between the province of Florence and Siena. All of them are raised and certified as organic, without the use of pesticides or fertilizers. The trees are all located in hilly areas, from 300 to 700 m above sea level.
Thanks to this variety of cultivars and skilful judgement on harvest timehas resulted in oils that stand out and differ in flavours and aromas. The specialties of the Gonnelli line are distinguished by their distinctive characteristics and varieties, in a wide range of different types of oil, each with its own well-defined organoleptic characteristics.