South of Napoli

Last summer, we finally drove south of Napoli. We had spoken about it for years — Cilento, Campania, Basilicata, Puglia, the beautiful Valle d’Itria. Places that felt almost mythical to us, but somehow always postponed.

The road changes so much as you move south. The forests of Campania gradually give way to the layered clay hills of Basilicata. The air grows drier and the light sharper.

Puglia opens wide, sun-washed, and with endless olive trees, their trunks twisted like stories that have been told too many times and yet never lose their power. 

It was there, in our summer holidays in Puglia, that we first tasted the oils from Francesco Cillo. Not in a grand setting, nor ceremonially, but as we always do: in our family, with our food.

We were on our way to discover the expressive Coratina and the balanced Peranzana, both mono varietal olive oils, carrying the name of their variety. 

Peranzana surprised us first. It began softly — with a sweetness that felt almost disarming. Then, slowly, bitterness emerged, gentle and controlled. And then, almost unexpectedly, the pungency rose from the throat, with an incredible delay, yet so elegant and long-lasting.

There were green tomatoes and almonds, and wild rocket, and a delightful persistence that we have never experienced before and that felt endless.

Coratina on the other hand declared itself from the very beginning. Powerful, as Coratina is, but composed. Green, vivid and structured, displaying flavours of artichockes, tomato leaves and thistle, something that we knew and loved in the the olive oils across the sea, in Sardinia. 

The holiday went to an end, and we left carrying those sensations with us.

November — When Oil Is at Its Most Alive

We loved Puglia so much that we returned at the end of October. Harvest had begun in Puglia and in the hills of Cancellara, in Basilicata. It rained a lot the weeks before, which slowed the work briefly, as Andrea Amadori (Francesco Cillo's grandson and now owner of the company), later explained, but production was now in full rhythm. 

This time only, we tasted the new harvest - freshly milled, and vivid as if was just pressed from the trees a moment ago. It was electric!

The herbaceous notes were more pronounced. The pungency more direct. The aromatics intense — exactly as Andrea had described they would be in the first weeks after bottling.

"The olive oils from the new harvest represent the most authentic and fresh experience of the harvest that we have just concluded" Andrea said. Youthful oils speak loudly before settling into balance, but beneath that vibrancy, the varietal character was unmistakable.

Coratina Mono expressed structure and depth while Peranzana Mono showed elegance and harmony.

That second tasting confirmed something that we were so much hoping for: this was not a one-time impression.

Conversations That Built Trust

What followed was not an immediate agreement, but a long conversation. 

There were emails, and careful shipments, and deliberate tastings back in Hamburg.

We revisited the oils several times over multiple days before writing back with our detailed impressions — describing in details the sweetness at the opening of the Peranzana, the delayed rise of pungency, the crisp structure of the Coratina. We shared our detailed impressions to Andrea, from taste to structure, from after-taste and pairing ideas.

Andrea Amadori’s response stood out.

He thanked us not just for our interest, but for the sensitivity and depth with which we had interpreted the oil. That mattered a world to us! And probably to them as well.

Because partnerships like this are not built on price lists or quick decisions. They are built on shared values — on respect and understanding for harvest timing, for soil, for manual work on difficult hills, for everything that olive oil and true relationships mean. Trust takes time: Slowly, through conversation and mutual understanding, something aligned.

And that is how our collaboration began.

Recognition — After the Fact

Months later did we discover that their Francesco Cillo Coratina had been named Feinschmecker No. 1 in 2025 in the category medium-fruity. 

We smiled and had a moment of pure joy: Not because of the ranking itself, but  - again, as with other olive oils before - because we had chosen it before knowing.

Before awards, before validation, before the headlines we chose it because of what we tasted.

Many things are accidental, but not our taste.

Taste is a choice, and for us it comes first. Always!