I developed a... not quite an obsession, maybe a strong interest, in olive oil six or seven years ago. My interest was initially piqued by a report I heard on N

I developed a... not quite an obsession, maybe a strong interest, in olive oil six or seven years ago. My interest was initially piqued by a report I heard on NPR about the health benefits. I learned the importance of the date the olives were pressed (fresher is better, go figure) and that, while countries in Europe might produce high quality olive oil, the quality stuff typically gets sold in Europe and the dregs get shipped to America and other countries. I have tried many different brands of olive oil in the interim years and I can say the best I have personally found in America come from California. I have absolutely no personal interest in either of the companies below, they just produce quality olive oil. My favorite by a wide margin is Sciabica, the oil they produce has that peppery bite people describe that makes you cough when you take a swig of it. I have never seen it sold in stores though, only online. Also, it is a little pricey. The other quality oil I have found is Californian Olive Ranch. It is not as good as Sciabica in my opinion but they have a wide distribution. I have found them at grocery stores on both the west and east coast of the US. There is one BIG caveat with this brand though. More often than not stores are carrying bottles that are one or even two years old. It's easy to tell how old it is because they are one of the few companies that print the pressed on date on the back of the bottle. In general the two most important qualities of an olive oil in my experience are purity (not mixed with other oils) and pressed on date. If a brand doesn't print the pressed on date on the bottle walk away, it is garbage; very few brands do this. Olives are typically harvested between September and December, that is when you are going to get the freshest best tasting oil.