The first edition of the event dedicated entirely to the symbolic product of Lake Garda will be held on May 17 and 18. Many initiatives are scheduled, from the exhibition market of oils and other typical products selected by Slow Food to the presentation of the “Guide to Extra Virgins”, from taste laboratories to cooking courses.
The Festa dell’Olio will also be an opportunity to learn more about the area thanks to the free visit to the Museo del Castello Scaligero, on the occasion of the International Museum Day and the guided tours of the ancient oil mill of Crero. Finally, the restaurants of the area will present dishes that exalt Oil, demonstrating how this product is much more than an ingredient.
On May 17 and 18, Torri del Benaco , on the Veronese shore of Lake Garda , will host the spring edition of the Festa dell’Olio , organized by the Municipality of Torri del Benaco in collaboration with Slow Food Veneto. Saturday, May 17 will be dedicated to technical training for olive growers , while on Sunday, May 18, the small port of the coastal town will host a market exhibition of some of the best producers of extra virgin olive oil from Veneto, Lombardy and Trentino, as well as tasting workshops and cooking lessons. “It is an important step towards the valorization of the typical agricultural and gastronomic products of Torri del Benaco, which goes hand in hand with the recent recognition of our De.Co., the municipal denomination,” says Mayor Stefano Nicotra.
The event opens on Saturday, May 17 , at 10:30 a.m. , in the auditorium of the Romanesque church of San Giovanni with a round table entitled “Which olive growing at the service of the environment?” . The speakers will be Francesca Baldereschi, curator of the Slow Food “Guide to Extra Virgin Olive Oils,” and the regional coordinators of the guide for Trentino, Lombardy, and Veneto, Meri Ruggeri, Marco Antonucci, and Mauro Pasquali. At the end of the meeting, the oil producers of the three regions who have received special awards from the guide will be awarded. Admission is free.
On Sunday 18 May , from 10:30 to 18:30 , the event moves to the small square of the port of Torri del Benaco , where there will be stands for about twenty producers of excellent oils from Veneto, Lombardy and Trentino, selected by Slow Food, who will also bring other quality agri-food products for tasting, such as wines, honeys and jams . Alongside them, the producers of the Slow Food Presidia of Monte Veronese di malga cheese and Grumolo delle Abbadesse rice. Also on the pier, in the Vela degli Olivi area, Slow Food will offer some taste workshops dedicated to extra virgin olive oils , which will alternate with the cooking shows of the Torresano chef Isidoro Consolini, already a Michelin star, author of the book “Oil: shapes and aromas”. There will also be tastings of some typical products from Lake Garda and Mount Baldo combined with the extra virgin olive oil produced in Torri del Benaco.
On the same day, Sunday 18 May , on the occasion of International Museum Day, it will be possible to visit the Museum of the Scaligero Castle in Torri del Benaco for free , recently reopened to the public after the winter break, and in particular its rich collection of ancient oil mills and traditional olive growing tools. Also free to visit, in the castle, is the exhibition, curated by Donatella Bertelli, of the works of the Los Diez Pintores Concretos group , an artistic movement that developed in Cuba between 1959 and 1961. In case of rain, the market exhibition and the food workshops will also be held in the rooms of the Scaligero Castle.
Another exceptional opening, Sunday 18 May from 2:30 pm to 5:30 pm , is that of the small eighteenth-century oil mill in the Crero district , with a guided tour by the animators of Ctg El Vissinel. Also in Crero, it will be possible to visit an olive grove that contains centuries-old olive trees of the native Drizzar variety and the now almost extinct cultivars Trép, Fòrt, Ràsa and Favaróla. At 3:30 pm, music among the olive trees in front of the little church of San Siro.
Finally, on both days, the restaurants and hotels of Torri del Benaco and the hamlets of Albisano and Pai will offer visitors typical dishes based on extra virgin olive oil.