Flos Olei 2026: Italy triumphs with 5 companies in the Hall of Fame and 13 in The Best

Rome is preparing to welcome the new edition of Flos Olei: the competition dedicated to the best extra virgin olive oils from around the world, curated by Marco Oreggia and Laura Marinelli, will take place on Friday, December 5th for the awards ceremony and on Saturday, December 6th for a tasting of the world's best production, at The Westin Excelsior, in the heart of the capital. This edition features 500 producers and 761 extra virgin olive oils included in the guide, hailing from 5 continents , 57 countries , 35 olive-growing regions (20 from Italy and 15 from Spain), and 92 world maps . A full 912 pages, it recounts the most fascinating territories and the best companies in the sector in a single manual produced in three bilingual editions (Italian-English, Italian-Chinese, and Italian-Spanish).

The event in the capital will also be an opportunity to meet the 9 companies that have earned a prestigious place in the Hall of Fame . Five Italian companies are listed: Comincioli (Lombardy), Frantoio Bonamini (Veneto), Frantoio Franci (Tuscany), Azienda Agraria Viola (Umbria), and Americo Quattrociocchi (Lazio). Rounding out the ranking are three Spanish companies: Casas de Hualdo (Castilla-La Mancha), Castillo de Canena and Aceites Finca La Torre (Andalusia), and the Croatian company Mate (Istra).

The 20 companies in The Best ranking are no less impressive, with Italy leading the way with 13 awards, followed by Spain with 3, and South Africa, Chile, Greece, and Croatia with one. The Company of the Year is Fonte di Foiano (Tuscany), the Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil of the Year is from the Spanish company Dominus (Andalusia), and the Emerging Company is Cuadrat Valley (Catalonia), The Green Company is Sabino Leone (Puglia). Masoni Becciu (Sardinia) wins the Best Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil award, while Mandranova (Sicily) wins the Best Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil award. that of Company of the Heart , while the Best Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil and PDO/PGI goes to Tommaso Masciantonio (Abruzzo). The Best Extraction Method goes to Rafael Alonso Aguilera - Oro del Desierto (Andalusia) from Spain, the Best Quality/Price Ratio goes to Frantoio di Massarosa (Tuscany), while the Quality/Quantity and Quality/Packaging awards go to De Rustica Estate (Cape Town) from South Africa and Agrícola Pobeña (VI Region - Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins) from Chile, respectively. Finally, the awards for the Monovarietal, Blended, and PDO/PGI categories are: Best Monovarietal - Light Fruity at the Le Tre Colonne Agricultural Company (Puglia), Best Single Variety - Medium Fruity Cioccolini (Lazio), Best Single-Variety - Intense Fruity at Terre di Poesia Farm (Puglia); Best Blended - Light Fruity at the Gaudenzi Oil Mill (Umbria), Best Blended - Medium Fruity Croatian OPG Rheos (Istra), Best Blended - Intense Fruity at Frantoio di Croci (Tuscany); Best DOP/IGP - Light Fruity Greek-style Olive Poem - A Drop of Art (Peloponnisos), Best Dop/Igp - Medium Fruity at Accademia Olearia - Tenute Fois (Sardinia) and Best Dop/Igp - Intense Fruity at Pruneti (Tuscany).

The rankings close with 4 special awards: Importer of the Year to Chic Taste by Yiann Wang (Taiwan), Restaurant of the Year to Restaurant Mancini (Sweden), Journalist of the Year to Milanka Bulimbašić Botteri - Maslinar (Croatia), and the “Cristina Tiliacos” award to Yuko Okuma (Japan).

"We're ready for this new edition ," explains Marco Oreggia, creator and editor of the guide, " to continue to showcase the work, passion, and stories of the producers who contribute to the success of global olive growing . This year, too, Italy has proven to be an international benchmark, with both established names and outstanding products yet to be discovered. At the same time, the guide highlights the sector's remarkable vitality across much of the globe: from Spain to Croatia, Greece, South Africa, and even Chile, an olive growing world is emerging in excellent shape, increasingly focused on sustainability and production quality."

"Like every year, we want to celebrate not only excellent extra virgin olive oils," emphasizes Laura Marinelli, curator of the guide , " but also the perseverance and consistency of those producers capable of pursuing a path of research and valorization of the territory, where innovation does not erase tradition, but rather renews it and makes it even more vibrant."