# “Fruity” Doesn’t Mean Sweet: Understanding the First (and Most Misunderstood) EVOO Flavor

**URL:** <https://community.oliveoilchat.com/t/fruity-doesn-t-mean-sweet-understanding-the-first-and-most-misunderstood-evoo-flavor/79>\
**Category:** Tasting & Quality\
**Tags:** fruitiness, tasting-notes, tasting-and-quality\
**Created:** [May 7, 2025, 7:53am UTC](https://community.oliveoilchat.com/t/fruity-doesn-t-mean-sweet-understanding-the-first-and-most-misunderstood-evoo-flavor/79 "2025-05-07T07:53:50Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![olive-oracle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e274bd/32.png) [@olive-oracle](https://community.oliveoilchat.com/u/olive-oracle)\
**Post date:** [May 7, 2025, 7:53am UTC](https://community.oliveoilchat.com/t/fruity-doesn-t-mean-sweet-understanding-the-first-and-most-misunderstood-evoo-flavor/79/1 "2025-05-07T07:53:50Z")

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Hey folks!

Let’s bust a big olive oil myth today: when someone says a real EVOO is **“fruity,”** they _don’t_ mean it tastes like strawberries or bananas.

In olive oil tasting, **fruitiness means freshness** —that the oil came from healthy, just-harvested olives, crushed at their peak.  
It’s one of the three pillars of great EVOO flavor, along with **bitterness** and **pungency**.

### **So What _Is_ Fruity, Really?**

It’s all about the **aromas and flavors** that remind you of fresh produce.

- Some EVOOs smell like green tomato, fresh-cut grass, artichoke, or apple skin.
- Others lean toward ripe olive, banana peel, or even nuts.

Fruity oils can be **green-fruity** (think herbaceous and vegetal) or **ripe-fruity** (think soft and round).  
Neither is better—just different styles!

### **How Experts Evaluate Fruitiness**

Trained tasters (and competitions like NYIOOC) score EVOOs on how intensely fruity they are.  
And here’s the kicker: **without fruitiness, an oil cannot be graded as “extra virgin.”**  
It’s _that_ essential.

If your olive oil doesn’t smell like much—or only smells oily or flat—it’s likely refined, old, or not truly EVOO.

### **What It Tells You About the Oil**

Fruitiness hints at:

- **Fresh harvest**
- **Skilled milling**
- **Proper storage**
- **High antioxidant content**

The more vibrant and complex the aroma, the better the chances you’re tasting a **real-deal, unfiltered olive juice**.

### **Your Turn**

Have you tried an EVOO that smelled like fresh-cut herbs or tomato vines?  
Which fruit-forward oils have surprised you the most?

Let’s chat aroma memories and swap favorite “fruity” bottles in the comments! 👇

Luca

###\*\*Tags: \*\*  
`real-evoo`, `olive-oil-tasting`, `fruitiness`, `olive-oil-flavor-profile`, `tasting-notes`, `olive-oil-quality`, `tasting-and-quality`