Always passionate about good taste and haute cuisine, free spirits continually searching for quality dishes and gourmets at heart, we have spent time in cities in Italy and abroad in our never-ending search for the best flavours, traditions, and culinary innovations, discovering and learning, over the years, the secrets and the value of what is good. From the dining rooms of the most prestigious Italian and foreign restaurants to the surprising and unexpected dishes served up by taverns and trattorias, connoisseurs of flavour, we appreciate all high-quality food and make no distinction.
LODO was born out of this shared passion: a fresh starting point, a new vision that remains firmly anchored in tradition
We are firmly convinced that an oil is the result of an amalgam of places, history, personalities and emotions that cannot be represented by just a score but has a story that must be told
Manuela Ersilia Livia Vigo, Milanese by birth, citizen of the world by passion, as well as for music and vinyl collecting, which today, together with her husband, has led her to own one of the largest and most important collections of rare records in the world. She studies English and Afro-American culture in New York and political science in Milan, the city she loves and which represents her. Her passion for oil blossomed on the family farm where she spent most of her time since she was a child, discovering every day the colours, shapes and scents that fill with emotions the air you breathe when you are among the olive trees. Ancient plants, a symbol of the strength of values and traditions, like what the family has always been teaching.
She has always been by her mother Marta Cartoceti’s side, and has had the good luck and the opportunity to be part of the L’ORCIOLO D’ORO from the very beginning, which allows her, over the years, through her long-standing family organisation, to get to know a large number of producers, tasters and experts in the sector, from whom she has learned techniques and built up close relationships. First and foremost, with Professor Giuseppe Fontanazza, thanks to whom she discovered the techniques that transform the olive oil into something deeply unique.
Vincenzo Federico Petisi, was born in Bergamo and has always shown a visceral love for music. After studying economy and business, he began to study saxophone, jazz arranging and Afro-American culture. During the interlude in London he devoted himself to electronic music, but once back in Italy he collaborated professionally in organising concerts for major Italian events and theatres.
It’s his passion for music that brought him closer to Manuela in 1999, with whom he now shares one of the world’s most authoritative vinyl collections, and thanks also to his Sicilian origins, he began to refine his interest in the world of olive growing. In 2005, he married Manuela and began to follow L’ORCIOLO D’ORO from behind the scenes, thus entering into the world.
Italy’s L’ORCIOLO D’ORO is the world’s leading and longest-running professional competition for Extra Virgin Olive Oil. It originated in the second half of the 1980s based on an idea of my mother Marta Cartoceti. For the occasion, she brought together a small group of enthusiasts, producers, restaurateurs and oenologists who served as a self-styled “amateur” jury. The project grew steadily and held its first event in 1991 with a jury made up exclusively of professional tasters who were members of the various taster associations and registered in the Registers or Lists of certified tasters, in accordance with the regulations in force at the time. The event very quickly became professionally recognised throughout the word of olive production. Since the first official event in 1991, L’ORCIOLO D’ORO has become an important and innovative point of reference for many olive farmers, who see competition as a stimulus for research and development, as well as a source of information to help them improve the quality of the oil itself and, consequently, the oil processing methods used.
From the beginning L’ORCIOLO D’ORO paid particular attention to ensuring the transparency of every single operation carried out. The jury is always made up of professionals led by recognised panel leaders, distinguishing itself from other events early on, and the event became a model and inspiration for other competitions to follow, in Italy and around the world.
After thirty years of experience in the world of oil in the famous L’ORCIOLO D’ORO competition, created by my mother Marta Cartoceti’s, I, Manuela Vigo, together with my husband Vincenzo Federico Petisi, created LODO, an eclectic guide to the world’s best extra virgin olive oils. This guide introduces the reader to the fascinating world of olive oil, showcasing its most distinguished and authentic producers in an innovative way, while always keeping an eye on tradition. LODO is a guide unlike any other: the evaluations it contains are supplemented by reviews with short descriptions of the companies, places, aromas, flavours, and people involved.
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International Guide of the World’s
Best Olive Oils
