A LOCAL CONNECTION TO TOP-QUALITY OLIVE OIL
How does a woman with a degree in forensic science and psychology find herself importing organic extra virgin olive oil from Crete? For 31-year-old Kiki Tsourounakis, the answer is that oil and blood do mix.
For years her grandfather had cultivated olive trees in the mountain village of Vlatos in western Crete, but sold the oil off in bulk to another company. When he passed away several years ago, his land was divided between Tsourounakis’s uncle and her father, who with her mother now splits the year between the nearby city Chania and Hawkesbury, Ontario. It wasn’t until a few years ago, on a trip to Vlatos, that her interest in olives turned professional.
“My older brother and I were having the olive oil and we said, ‘This stuff is amazing and people here don’t appreciate what a high commodity it is in North America.’ So we decided to bring it over,” says Tsourounakis. “I had a bit of a food background, I’m a huge foodie and I love business, so I thought, ‘Why not?’ I came back and researched how to import olive oil, and my friend’s a graphic designer, so we created a label, and 18 months later, the oil [now called Vlatos] was coming on the boat.”
The project is very much a family affair. My uncle who runs the operation is also my contact for importing and exporting. It’s my direct family that harvest it. It stays in the family so we know it’s not tampered with,” she says. The oil they proudly produce is made from the first press of organically grown Tsounati olives, found only in western Crete, giving the product a unique flavour that Tsourounakis describes as light and fruity with a buttery finish. The olives are hand-picked, washed and machine-pressed within eight hours to prevent oxidation. Everything is done at temperatures below 27 degrees Celsius to preserve nutrients.
Vlatos is available at more than 20 stores and restaurants in Toronto, and Tsourounakis is also beginning to import fleur de sel collected by a woman on the norther shores of Crete. As for other plans, the entrepreneur’s ambitions are both simple and daunting. “I see companies that start off with ideas that are wholesome, but then they kind of lose it. I just want to keep providing 100-percent quality.”
WHERE TO GET IT
Vlatos oil comes in 250 mL ($14.99), 500mL ($28.90) and 750 mL ($39.95) sizes.
Retailers include: Alex Farm Products; Butcher By Nature; Calico Cafe & Catering; Cheese Boutique; Leslieville Cheese Market; The Mercantile; Organic Boutique; Scheffler’s Deli & Cheese; Sun Valley Fine Foods; Thin Blue Line; Noah’s Natural Foods.
For a full list of shops, visit www.vlatos.com.