The navigation to our website uses several icons, which are:  Our Logo, A Globe, An Urn, An Art Frame with a “?” and an Owl. You should click them all and see what they do and where they take you.

I thought some visitors might be curious as to why I chose these icons.  So, read on and I’ll explain.

The Tassos® logo you’ll notice is not simply a static or flat image. It has depth and it glitters. The Tassos Company, just like life, is constantly in motion and the twinkle is just our way of saying, you’ve come to the right place.  It also echoes the genuine gold filament which is used on all our labels. Clicking the icon brings you home (to the home page). 

The Globe is centered on the Mediterranean, from where all Tassos® Products come. It spins to show that we bring our products around the world and like the world, the Tassos community is in motion. While “home is where the heart is,” people in the Tassos® community consider themselves citizens of the world. Clicking The Globe icon brings you to this community area, where you are now, and where you can join the discussion of all the things important in world of Tassos.

The Amphora (or Urn) is a replica of an ancient Greek urn, the very same urn that my Dad, Tassos, presented to Richard M. Daley, long-time Mayor of Chicago as well as to both women’s and men’s champions of the Chicago Marathon, when in its 20^thyear anniversary. The urn itself depicts marathon runners, and was crafted in commemoration of where the “Marathon” race got its name, Marathon, Greece. The Chicago Marathon was one of the first philanthropic events that we sponsored, very near the date when the Tassos Company was first incorporated. Clicking the urn brings you to our History page.

The Art Frame lets you know that we hold our products out to be of superior, artisan quality, not unlike a great work of art. The question mark represents the unexpected treasures you’ll find here at Tassos and quickly turns into an “!” to show you just how excited we are that you’ve come to visit us.  Clicking the frame brings you to the products pages where you can purchase or peruse all that Tassos.com currently has to offer.

The Owl is modeled after the Athenea Noctua, the animal most associated with the Goddess Athena, the goddess of wisdom, and from where Athens, Greece gets its name. Clicking this icon brings you to the contact page where you’ll find all of the tools you need to share your wisdom with us. One can never be too wise. But there’s more…Athens, Greece is also where my Dad, Tassos, was born and raised and where my siblings and I spent many summers as children in the company of our grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. The old drachma coins, prior to the Euro, featured our owl as well. And perhaps least importantly, and perhaps a little silly, the owl also happens to be my favorite animal (I know its kind of “corny” but it also happens to be true, so I wanted to tell you).

When storing your olive oil remember this: Air tight, out of sight and cool, not cold.

Air-tight: Minimize your olive oil’s exposure to air. That is why every bottle of Tassos® olive oil comes with its own cap. Imagine that. Even our 3 Liter Tin has a pour spout that closes up with a cap and is perfect for portioning into fancy decanters for the kitchen or table.

Out of Sight: Keep your olive oil in a dark place as sunlight does terrible things to olive oil. That’s why we shield our Tassos® olive oil with tinted green glass, but our 3 Liter Tin doesn’t let any light in at all.

Cool, not cold: Not too hot (above 72 degrees F) and not too cold (below 47 degrees F). That’s why we ship in heated containers over the colder months of the year. It should go without saying that the refrigerator is a “no go” zone. Below the kitchen sink should be just right (and easy to get to)!

In my travels around the world, it seems everybody has been interested in Tassos® Olive Oil and in olive oil in general. What makes one olive oil better than the other? How do I know which Olive Oil is right for me? I will tell you what I’ve told them….

Olive Oil is a very complex juice. That’s right, it’s a juice. In fact, it’s a fruit juice. And while it would take a talented chemist, with a fairly sophisticated lab, to reveal all the important characteristics of any one olive oil, here are some things you can look for when selecting your olive oil, without having a Ph.D. in science, just by looking at the bottle.

First: Acidity 

The Oleic Acidity of any Extra Virgin Olive Oil should be printed on the label. The lower the acidity the better the olive oil is for you (the more antioxidants). The Oleic Acidity of Extra Virgin Olive Oil ranges from 0% to 1%. Tassos® Extra Virgin Olive Oil is bottled at no more than .05%.

 Second: Age

As the oil ages, oleic acidity tends to creep up. How fast it creeps depends on how the oil is stored. So, try and get the freshest bottle you can find. Our best before date should give you an indication. Properly stored (see post on Storing Your Olive Oil) olive oil can last a very, very long time, but should be consumed within about 2 years from pressing for maximum flavor. That being said, if it takes you 2 years to use 17 oz of olive oil, you probably don’t like olive oil very much. Please don’t call us and ask, “We’ve had this bottle of olive oil for 6 years, is it any good?” Throw it away and spend the money you save from not calling us on something you really want.

Third: Clarity 

Olive Oil should be free from any clouds or sediment (unless you’re looking for an unfiltered olive oil). As an olive oil sits, any sediment will settle to the bottom. Simply, tip the bottle upside down and see what happens.

• If you see a black cloud (or plume), then that means the oil is poorly filtered. That black cloud you see is dirt. It’s not going to hurt you, but it’s not the bottle you want.
• If you see a white cloud (or plume), then that means the oil has been frozen. The white cloud you see is Stearin, a wax sometimes used to make candles. It’s not going to hurt you, and if your going to add a lot of heat to the oil it will dissolve, but it’s not the bottle you want.
• If you see nothing (e.g., no plumes or clouds) and the oil maintains it clarity, this is the bottle you want.

 Fourth: Origin

By law, the origin of any olive oil is to be published on the bottle. Some olive oils are blended from oils of various different qualities and from various different countries. Tassos® Olive Oil is 100% estate bottled in Crete, Greece, and never blended. What goes into our bottles is the very best of our press and so is very consistent from one bottle to the next bottle in any given year.

 Fifth: Color

Color doesn’t really matter. Our olive oil is green, but being green doesn’t make it necessarily better than a yellow olive oil. What I can tell you is that our olive oil is green because we use very immature olives (the concentration of chlorophyll is what gives it it’s green color). That being said, the darker green the Olive Oil is the more likely to be of higher quality than yellow olive oils. This is because most lighter color olive oils (from yellow to white) generally include refined oils (olives that have been heated to extract the maximum quantity of juice). In some countries outside of the USA, it is against the law to sell these refined olive oils as food. Personally, I would skip the “Pure, Light, or Extra-light” Olive oils. Incidentally, this also relates to the importance of “First Cold Pressed” or “Cold Extraction.” When heat is added to the pressing of olives, the heat burns off the flavor and aroma of the olive oil. The bottle you want should say “First Cold Pressed” or more correctly, “Cold Extracted,” since these days, no one has “presses” in the traditional sense.

But the Most Important thing is:

Taste. The olive oil that has the best taste for you is the olive oil that has the best taste.   Just because one bottle is more expensive than another doesn’t mean you should “prefer” that oil. Don’t let anyone get snooty about his or her olive oil with you. Olive Oil is a lot like any other food or wine, and is a matter of personal preference. Tassos® offers four qualities of Olive Oil. Tassos® Extra Virgin (like being hit in the head with an olive tree), Tassos® Fine Virgin (like being hit in the head with just an olive branch and much more creamy), Tassos® Organic Olive Oil (generally the most mild olive oil we sell and, of course, its organic), and Tassos® PEZA Extra Virgin (Product of Protected Designated Origin, or P.D.O.) which has the fewest imperfections in its flavor but is also less fruity than Tassos® Extra Virgin.

Welcome to Tassos website! You have discovered Tassos-World, the Tassos Family community site, where you can come to find out what’s new at Tassos, share your comments and life experiences, search for answers to those irksome questions and get yourself educated on the products we have to offer. If you’ve gotten this far, then you’ve probably already done some exploring. From time to time, I will be adding a lot more content, a lot more products and a lot more unexpected experiences. So, keep exploring!

On the right you’ll see a list of links to help you find for what your are looking. For tips and insights into the website try the “The Tassos Website.” Got a question? Try the “Education” link.