Surrounded by rolling hills, vineyards and olive groves, lies the historic Podere Fignano farmhouse. Podere Fignano has a long history dating back to the Middle Ages, from around 1400. ‘Podere’ is the Italian word for rural farm. The name ‘Fignano’ comes from the Latin word, Ficus, which means fig tree. This indicates that the area probably had many fig trees in the past. In the Middle Ages, the production of figs was an important source of income in many villages in Tuscany.

Fignano was inhabited until 1964 and was abandoned until the early 90s. Until the Bigazzi family bought it in 1994 and started renovating it to make it their home. The farm was in very poor condition, so it was necessary to demolish the building and rebuild it from the foundations. The original materials were reused and an attempt was made to make the Fignano farm as similar as possible to the original.

The barn, on the other hand, was in better condition. It is believed that the barn is less old than the farm, dated around the middle of the 19th century. The barn has been renovated, with the interior adjusted and the necessary windows and doors added that were not previously present.

Fignano is surrounded by an olive grove, on the estate there are more than 200 beautiful olive trees.

There are more than 500 species of olive trees in Italy and they each give their own specific oil. The oil has a green or yellow color, in different shades. For high quality olive oil, the olives are picked by hand.

Podere Fignano closes its gate at the end of October and then the harvest of the olives begins. This careful work is done with dedication and according to the criteria of artisanal farming. In November, the fruits of the olive trees are extracted and pressed, by means of manual harvesting. Under the trees, a large net is stretched, and with a small tool, resembling a large long comb, the olives are separated from the tree. Because olives start to ferment quickly after picking, they should be processed as soon as possible. In a number of steps, twigs and leaves are removed and the olives are washed and ground into a paste. The oil can then be extracted from this paste.

Fignano produces about 2500 kilos of olives every year, about 12 kilos per tree. About 130 ml of oil is extracted from 1 kilo of olives. This ‘extra virgin olive oil’ must be pressed mechanically without heat or chemical additives and contain less than 0.8% free acids. The oil is from the first, cold press.

Take home a delicious memory, our artisanal ‘extra virgin olive oil’!