L’huile d’olive AOP of the Baux-de-Provence valley is produced in the Alpilles around the famous medieval Baux-de-Provence. The Alpilles are a small chain of limestone mountains in the north of the Bouches-du-Rhône department in France, bathed by the sun and dried by the Mistral, an ideal climate for olive trees.
Geography of the AOP olive oil terroir of the Baux-de-Provence valley
Located north of Bouches-du-Rhône on the Alpilles massif which ends the mountain range “the Alps”, it is bordered by the Rhône to the west and the Durance to the east. The Bees form a transverse axis with a length of 40km which overlooks the Crau to the south and the Vaucluse to the north.
PDO olive oil from the Baux-de-Provence valley in the Bouches-du-Rhône department
List of municipalities included entirely in the AOP area: Arles, Aureille, The Baux de Provence, Eygalières, Eyguières, Fontvieille, Lamanon, Maussane-les-Alpilles, Mouries, Paradou, Saint-Martin-de-Crau, orgon, Saint-Etienne-du-Gres, Saint-Remy-de-Provence, Senas and Tarascon.
Varieties of olives authorized for PDO
In addition to the area defined above, AOP olive oil claimants from the Baux-de-Provence valley must have an olive grove that includes certain varieties of local olives. The PDO imposes a multi-varietal oil. The orchard should include 90% main varieties. For the composition of olive oil, two main varieties must be present.
- Main varieties: Salonenque, Beruguette, Coarse, Verdale.
- Secondary varieties : Picholine and some local varieties.
Secondary varieties cannot exceed 10% you are guarding.
A land, two types of oils
The PDO olive oil from the Baux-de-Provence valley offers two types of oils, mainly oriented towards’matured olive oil and the fruity green.
Ripe fruity olive oil from the Baux-de-Provence valley region
Matured olive oil can also be worked with olives picked green but left to mature 4 to 5 days for them to turn purple. They are then triturated and pressed to obtain a ripe fruitiness.
The aromas are completely different and we are more on cooked artichoke, tapenade smells, ripe fruit, toast. The ardor is felt for the first few months and then tends to disappear. It is a very sweet and fruity oil.
The Moulin Cornille in Maussane is one of the last mills to mature the olives in a naturally ventilated attic.
Green fruity olive oil from the Baux-de-Provence valley region
The green fruitiness is an oil where green olives are pressed immediately after harvest. This oil is characterized by pronounced aromas of raw artichoke or freshly cut grass. It has a moderate ardor and a slight peppery taste..
table olives
Les Baux de Provence holds two PDOs for table olives :
- broken green olive,
- black olive, stung or salted.
The broken olive is a local specialty which consists of breaking the olives with a mallet and soaking them in brine with fennel and some Provencal herbs to remove all the bitterness. A delicious aperitif, it is the local accompaniment of Pastis.
Cooperative olive mills
3 olive mills cooperatives are present in the Baux-de-Provence Valley AOP sector :
- Moulin Jean-Marie Cornille (Bio) in Maussane les Alpilles,
- Mouriès Cooperative Olive Oil Mill,
- Baux Valley Olive Oil SICA (Bio) in Raphèle les Arles.
Private olive mills
9 oil mills are spread over the territory of the PDO :
- Aureille Oil Mill,
- Shell Mill Taillades,
- Barres mill in Maussane les Alpilles,
- Moulin du Mas de Vaudoret (Bio) in Mouries,
- Moulin St Jean in Fontvieille,
- Bédarrides Oil Mill in Fontvieille,
- Moulin Castiles (Bio) The Baux de Provence,
- Marguerite Plains Mill in Maussane les Alpilles,
- Moulin St Michel in Mouries.
Olive-growing estates
26 large estates or agricultural groups work with olive oil with the AOP Vallée des Baux-de-Provence :
- Bicheron Alain in Maussane-les-Alpilles,
- Estoublon Castle in Fontvieille,
- Château Romanin in St-Remy-de-Provence,
- Denis Fage in Eyguieres,
- Domaine de la Colombe d'Or in Mouries,
- Domaine de la Vallongue-SCEA Le Roucas in Eygalieres,
- Domain of Lauzieres in Mouries,
- Domain of Montmajour in Arles,
- Domain of Valdition in Orgon,
- Dunand Bruno in Salon-de-Provence,
- EARL Dublé in Eyguieres,
- Grand Brahis in Eyguieres,
- L’Olivette in Eygalieres,
- The Fabresse in Eygalieres,
- The Mare Farm of the Village in Saint-Martin-de-Crau,
- The Lieutenant in Saint-Martin-de-Crau,
- The More of the Tapi in Mouries,
- The Delights of Cabrières in Fontvieille,
- Louis Arlot in Aureille,
- Agricultural Vocational School Les Alpilles in Saint Remy de Provence,
- Mas de L'Ange in Fontvieille,
- SCEA Domaine de la Blaque in Orgon,
- SCEA du Boutonnet in Maussane-les-Alpilles,
- SCEA du Mourre de Viret in Saint Remy de Provence,
- SCEA Mas de Gourgonnier in Mouries,
- Mas de la Dame Farmer's Company The Baux de Provence.
The confectioners of the Vallée des Baux de Provence
The valley of Les Baux is famous for the work of table olives and especially the’broken olive. The confectioners work with many varieties of olives and have obtained a Controlled Designation of Origin of the Vallée des Baux de Provence.: the broken green olive and the black olive pitted or in salt.
- Confectionery Jean Martin in Maussane les Alpilles,
- Gonfond Raymond in Maussane les Alpilles,
- The Orchard of Les Baux in Maussane-les-Alpilles,
- Olive tree delights in Maussane les Alpilles,
- Olives Arnaud in Tarascon,
- SICA Oléicole de la Vallée des Baux Organic products available in Raphèle les Arles.