shopping
showcase magazine | dining & shopping 2012
olympia olive oil 321 Fourth Ave E, Olympia 360.878.9571 olyoliveoil.com At Olympia Olive Oil, you’ll be hard-pressed to leave the store without a little taste of what makes it so special. Having just opened its doors in the heart of downtown Olympia in January, the new business owned by Fred Berschauer and John Hoehne sells high quality olive oils and balsamic vinegars-- with many of the gourmet products being sourced from across the world—at affordable prices. Berschauer, a FEMA worker who was deployed to Missouri after tornadoes and flooding hit that region, discovered a store in Branson with high-end olive oils and balsamic vinegars. After the store clerk gave him a thorough tasting, Berschauer called Hoehne, his friend of 36 years, and told him he had a delicious idea for a new business. “Olympia had nothing like this. The oils are fresh and clean, the vinegars are an exact representation of the flavors they are labeled as, and I was hooked,” said Berschauer.
Sourcing oils from both the Northern Hemisphere (Spain, Tunisia, Italy, Portugal, Greece and California) and the Southern (Chile, Argentina and Australia) allows Olympia Olive Oil to sell the freshest product available because it has fresh pressings every six months. The vinegars are authentic too. “Our balsamics are from Modena, Italy and come in just about any fruit flavor you can imagine, as well as some flavors you can’t imagine like Sorano honey, espresso, champagne and maple.” With summer here and hearty salads and grilled meats on everyone’s menu, Berschauer recommends getting creative with the dressing! Try blood orange olive oil paired with cranberry pear white balsamic or splash an herb olive oil on your pasta salads. For grillers or slow barbecue roasters, the Tuscan herb olive oil makes a flawless marinade for poultry, fish and pork. Customers are always encouraged to stop in for a tasting and find their own favorite flavors. TAMMY ROBACKER
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