Oh, interesting. I found it very unpleasant. Didn’t realize some people don’t react to it the same way.
I mean there are apparently folks for whom cilantro tastes like soap, so…
2 Likes
Right, but that gets brought up a lot. This doesn’t.
I don’t find it surprising at all that people experience flavors differently, and your reaction of a “burn” seems similar to someone tasting ‘soap’ when ingesting cilantro.
But that’s why we have food fora 
2 Likes
I don’t think you’re overthinking it at all. Palates vary widely, and ATK is working to the median (if not lowest common denominator) of what’s most widely available and would work for the most palates in their subscriber pool.
The fact that they are recommending extra virgin olive oil as an all-purpose medium is indicative, also that they are sipping it – who sips olive oil in normal use?
If you’re dressing salad or drizzling it, there are other flavors interacting, and if you’re cooking with it there are even more flavors that offset the oil. Dipping bread or some other offset would be a more realistic test.
Lucini is lovely but expensive for all-purpose use (as are many others that didn’t make their test panel cut).
(I think of extra virgin olive oil the same way I do mustard oil – it should have a bite / flavor, you miss it if it’s not there, but you don’t want it as the only flavor note.)
I use olive oil to near exclusion in saute/pan fry/sear/whatever. it’s not ‘extra virgin’ - not sure… what is the next step down? “virgin olive oil?”
I have ‘on-bottle-tap’ and use, safflower oil when the intention is to smoke the pan then plop in ‘the thing’ for super fast super hot sear. big sea scallops comes to mind…
for things I want a bit more browning i.e. color I’ll add a bit of butter - paniert Spaetzle for example…
‘extra virgin’ costs (a lot) more, and the things that make it ‘extra’ - aromatics/etc - tend to disappear when heated. certainly does not “harm” the dish by it’s loss - just a question of economics. for a drizzle finish or stuff like Caesar salad I use extra-virgin.
same issue arises with “fresh ground black pepper” - I’m very fond of tellicherry peppercorns. they add a very nice sensory ‘aroma’ when fresh ground onto anything uncooked. I use them/same pepper grinder… for all pepper adds, but in a cooked dish that aroma disappears, the pepper taste/bite remains…
Raises hand.
At least the EVOO kind.
Gold star. But not representative.
Wut!
Why, never! 
1 Like
We go through enough olive oil to justify keeping what doesnt fill my bottle with a spout in the closet. But I used to keep my extra oil in the refrigerator. Thats what someimporters do to retain freshness (when coluccio brings out fresh glass bottles to their display in Brooklyn, I can see tha the oil is solidified). the costco oils are usually fine for general cooking use but they are variable and I found at least one bottle of italian (blend) EVOO too much on the bitter side to enjoy. /we had one bottle of the spanish blend I really liked. Im using cretan oil right now for all purposes but its really too expensive. Olive oil is a good thing to sample as you go around the ethnic groceries in the tristate. For example, we got some really nice portuguese oils out at Seabras in the Ironbound when we shopped there occasionally. Boy do I miss the olive oil tastings at fairway!!!
The ratings are probably most reliable for the name brands (they will be blends) that seek to maintain a standard profile year to year.
2 Likes
Was it even in the test?
Excellent point, thanks. It really is changeable.
2 Likes
My late law school classmate introduced me to Zoe 50 years ago. She always had a can.
I alternate between boxes of Corto and Boxes of California Olive Ranch. Spigots!
1 Like
I got a bottle of Carapelli Organic Olive Oil at Star Market. It tastes like olives with a bit of pepper. In comparison, CA Olive Ranch just tastes like oil. I also really like the pour spout on the Carapelli which gives you much more control of the quantity. I’m a convert.
