Aceite Picualia

Picualia

Picualia is an olive mill located in Bailén, in the province of Jaén, one of the world's great olive oil-producing regions. Its history stems from the union of local farmers and a long cooperative tradition, with generations of families who have dedicated their work to the cultivation of olive trees, especially the Picual variety.

The entity's origins date back to 2009, when two historic cooperatives from Bailén merged: Agrícola de Bailén Virgen de Zocueca and Agrícola de Bailén San José Obrero. This union gave birth to Agrícola de Bailén Virgen de Zocueca, while Picualia was developed as its brand and as an expression of a new phase focused on the production of high-quality extra virgin olive oils.

Although Picualia is a relatively recent brand, it is backed by much more extensive olive-growing experience. The cooperatives that gave rise to the project brought together numerous local farmers and decades of knowledge regarding the behavior of olive trees, harvesting, and oil production under the specific conditions of the Jaén countryside.

One of the major steps in this evolution was the commitment to modern facilities in Bailén, designed to improve control over the entire process and allow for the differentiated production of the highest-quality fruit. Technology, olive selection, and processing speed are thus combined with the expertise accumulated by its member farmers.

Currently, Picualia represents a model in which cooperative tradition and innovation work together. The mill has managed to build an identity closely linked to Bailén and its most emblematic variety, bringing Picual olives and Jaén EVOO to national and international markets.

Picual: the variety that defines Picualia's identity

As its name suggests, the Picual olive occupies a central position in Picualia's production. This variety broadly dominates the olive groves of Jaén and finds particularly suitable conditions for its cultivation in the surroundings of Bailén. Its importance is such that it constitutes one of the main elements of the oil mill's identity.

The Picual stands out for producing oils with great personality, aromatic intensity, and high stability. When harvested at early stages of ripeness, it can provide especially green profiles, with vegetal notes that may evoke olive leaf, tomato plant, freshly cut grass, or green almond, accompanied by the characteristic balance between bitterness and pungency.

For its highest quality EVOO, Picualia carries out a careful selection of the olives directly from the field. The early harvest allows for working with fruit that is still green or at the veraison stage, sacrificing part of the oil yield that would be obtained with ripe olives in exchange for obtaining a raw material with greater aromatic intensity.

Speed is another essential element. The olives are transported to the facilities in Bailén and processed in the shortest time possible. There, the fruit is classified and inspected before milling begins, preventing higher-quality batches from remaining in storage for prolonged periods.

The oil mill has modern technology to control fundamental parameters during production, especially time, temperature, and exposure to oxygen. Extraction using mechanical procedures and low temperatures seeks to preserve the aromatic and antioxidant compounds naturally present in the olives.

This specialization allows Picualia to showcase different expressions of the same variety. Depending on the plot, the moment of harvest, and the selection of the fruit, the Picual can present distinct sensory profiles, demonstrating that behind a variety traditionally associated with powerful oils, there also exists great aromatic complexity when working from the field with maximum quality criteria.

The olive groves of Bailén: the origin of Picualia’s EVOO

The origin of Picualia lies in the olive groves of Bailén and its surrounding areas, in the north of the province of Jaén. This is a territory where the olive tree dominates much of the landscape and where numerous families have maintained a close economic, social, and cultural relationship with this crop for generations.

The olive groves belong to the cooperative's farmer members, which gives Picualia access to a vast area of cultivation and various plots within the Bailén district and nearby zones. This diversity allows for the selection of specific estates and olives when looking for particular characteristics for early harvest productions and higher-quality ranges.

The undisputed protagonist of this landscape is the Picual variety, perfectly adapted to the conditions of the province of Jaén. The dry and very hot summers, rainfall concentrated mainly in the coldest months, and significant temperature contrasts throughout the year shape the tree's development and the ripening of its fruit.

The work carried out throughout the entire agricultural cycle is fundamental. Monitoring the plots makes it possible to track the olive's development and determine the moment of harvest not only based on yield, but also by considering its health, ripeness, and sensory potential. For batches intended for the earliest oils, this selection begins before the olives even reach the mill.

The proximity of the farms to the facilities in Bailén also makes it easier for the fruit to reach the mill quickly. Field and mill are thus closely connected: a carefully cultivated olive would lose much of its potential if it were to remain waiting for too long before being processed.

Picualia therefore finds its main heritage in the farmers, the olive groves of Bailén, and the Picual variety. Combining this agricultural knowledge accumulated over generations with a modern mill allows for a contemporary interpretation of one of Jaén's most representative olive landscapes to be transferred into the oil.