Which is best: filtered or unfiltered Extra Virgin Olive Oil?
- May 16, 2021
- 3 min read
Updated: Jan 21
Filtered!
Are you surprised to hear this?
Let's explain...

Although “unfiltered” Extra Virgin Olive Oil sounds very special – and makes for a great marketing catch phrase – there is another, very important, side to it.
Don't get us wrong, during production there is nothing better than tasting our freshly extracted Extra Virgin Olive Oil at the mill. Its robust flavors and cloudy green color are the best accompaniment to a slice of warm, freshly made bread!
However, if an Extra Virgin Olive Oil stays unfiltered past this point, its shelf life as an Extra Virgin Olive Oil is greatly reduced. According to our experience (and official studies), even after just a couple months, an unfiltered Extra Virgin Olive Oil starts developing tasting defects, one of those being a “muddy” sediment. And if oil has even a small tasting defect it is no longer considered fit to be in the Extra Virgin category. It is then demoted to the Virgin Olive Oil category. Additionally, if an olive oil is unfiltered its smoke point is greatly reduced compared to if the same oil were filtered.
Another very important fact is that, if olive oil remains unfiltered, then the chances increase for something unwanted to pass into the bottle which the consumer will purchase. We won’t mention what these "something’s" might be!
So, by filtering olive oil, a very small fraction of its taste and aromas might be lost at the very beginning (these aren’t noticeable to most, in a blind taste-test), but the quality gains are much more substantial.
It is actually much easier and cheaper for us to leave the oil unfiltered. Unfiltered means that there’s no further work involved, not to mention the fact that production quantities would increase since we wouldn’t be losing quite a bit of olive oil during filtration.
But we are not looking for the easy or inexpensive way. Our utmost concern is to achieve the highest possible quality for the maximum amount of time. Everything we do at PJ KABOS has this sole goal.
By the way, the filters we use are simple, paper filters. There are absolutely no chemicals involved and we always use fresh, new filters for each batch of olive oil.
PJ Kabos High-Phenolic Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Your Trusted Oil, Straight from Our Table to Yours.
Fresh Harvest 2024/25 High-Phenolic EVOOs
from PJ KABOS
PJ Kabos Family Reserve Organic—"Phenolic Shot" is an award-winning extra virgin olive oil that is extremely high in polyphenols, possibly the highest phenolic content available in a true Extra Virgin Olive Oil today. Its intense bitterness and pungency clearly reflect the activity of these polyphenols.
(Black Bottle)
PJ KABOS Family Reserve Organic - Robust, is an award-winning extra virgin olive oil that is very high in polyphenols and adds depth, character and great health benefits to every meal.
(White Bottle)
PJ KABOS Family Reserve Organic - Medium, is an award-winning extra virgin olive oil that is high in polyphenols and adds a lovely taste and great health benefits to every meal.
(White Tin)

PJ KABOS Family Reserve - Medium, is an extra virgin olive oil in an easy-to-store tin that is high in polyphenols and adds a lovely taste and great health benefits to every meal.
Please enjoy having a look around our websites and PJ Kabos Amazon Store for more about our many high-phenolic olive oils, recipes, history, etc..
And follow along with us on Instagram for photos concerning olive oil production, our groves in Greece, articles about olive oil, family history and more.
PJ KABOS is a top, on-line seller of High-Phenolic Extra Virgin Olive Oil. It is: "For those who want to be good to their bodies."
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