Ligurian olive oil is considered to be amongst Italy’s best.

So, I can understand why Imperia’s Annual Olive Festival is such an important event. After a year’s hiatus (last November was like a ghost town on the streets of Oneglia, Imperia) this year’s festival was a very big deal. The locals were out in force and that did my heart good—as did the delicious results from the frantoio’s (olive presses) that have been hard at work from the recent harvest.

Imperia's Annual Olive Oil Festival

We joined in and tasted and tasted and tasted.

Call me crazy but I could sit and sip really good extra virgin olive like a cocktail. So, imagine my happy internal state stepping up to booth after booth to taste the oil from local producers. The olive oils made from the small taggiasca olives, specific to this area, are especially yummy. These olives were “brought here, selected and spread by the white Benedictine monks of San Colombano.  (Source Wikipedia)

Imperia’s Annual Olive Festival isn’t just about olives.

No, there’s SO much more. The event is bursting with temptation in the form of artisanal cheeses and cured meats, pesto (another Ligurian specialty), wines, pastries, grappas, pastries, handmade soaps, and more. I’d be remiss if I didn’t include a special shoutout to the many delicious manifestations of focaccia, a regional specialty.

Join me for a quick video tour of this big celebration.

Yeah, it’s best for me to stop jabbering on and take you up close and personal with Jed’s happy first experience of Imperia’s Annual Olive Festival! Enjoy!