Published in: Where to Buy

What to Buy at a Greek Olive Shop (Beyond the Oil)

A good Greek olive shop sells far more than bottles of oil. You will find barrels and jars of table olives from different regions, olive paste, early harvest “agoureleo”, flavoured oils, olive-oil soap and carved olive wood. Some of it is excellent and specific to one place; some is generic souvenir stock.

This guide explains what to look for in each category, which names carry an EU protected designation, and what is worth checking on the label. We link to shops and producers in our olive directory that sell each type of product, so you can buy from the source.

Table olives by variety

Greek table olives are usually named after a variety, a place, or both. The five you will see most often:

Olive	What it is	Protected name to look for
Kalamata	Glossy black olives of the Kalamon variety, picked ripe and cured in brine	Elia Kalamatas PDO (Messinia only)
Halkidiki	Large green olives, often sold pitted or stuffed	Prasines Elies Chalkidikis PDO
Throumba	Wrinkled black olives, dry-salted rather than brined	Throumba Thasou, Throumba Chiou and Throumba Ampadias Rethymnis PDOs
Amfissa	Konservolia olives from around Amfissa and Delphi, sold green or black	Konservolia Amfissis PDO
Conservolea (Konservolia)	Greece’s main black table olive, grown widely in central Greece	Several regional PDOs, including Amfissa

Kalamata

The Elia Kalamatas PDO, registered in 1996, covers Kalamon olives grown and processed in Messinia. Under the specification they are hand-picked when fully ripe, scored, washed and brined, with an average weight of about 6 g and flesh that comes away easily from the stone. Olives of the same variety grown elsewhere are perfectly good but can’t carry the PDO. Buy them in Messinia at shops on the Kalamata region page, or from producers elsewhere such as Sparta Gourmet, whose range includes whole, pitted and marinated Kalamata olives. Our Kalamata vs Halkidiki guide compares the two in detail.

Halkidiki

The Prasines Elies Chalkidikis PDO covers green olives of the Hondrolia Chalkidikis and Chalkidiki varieties grown in Halkidiki. The EU register describes large fruit with a high flesh-to-stone ratio, bright green to greenish-yellow colour and a slightly bitter, spicy flavour, sold whole, pitted, stuffed or crushed. In Halkidiki, Periapton Olives in Nea Olynthos sells Halkidiki and Kalamata olives, including rolled and sun-dried styles, and Kapa Olive Farm and Karemfillis Olives are nearby. More on the Halkidiki page.

Throumba

Throumba olives are unusual: they lose much of their bitterness while still on the tree, thanks to a fungus (Phoma oleae). According to the Throumba Thasou PDO specification, the fully ripe olives are hand-picked on Thasos, packed in coarse salt for 30-40 days and then aired to improve their colour. The result is a wrinkled black olive with no brine. Look for them in island delis and good city shops, such as Simolive’s Elia Elia in Thessaloniki’s Kapani market.

Amfissa and Conservolea

Konservolia is Greece’s main black table olive variety, and one tree can give both green olives (picked from around mid-September) and black ones (left to ripen into winter). The Konservolia Amfissis PDO covers olives from Phocis, including Amfissa, Itea and Delphi. Our guide to the best Greek olive varieties covers more.

Olive paste

Olive paste (often sold as pâté or tapenade) is usually made from Kalamata or green olives blended with olive oil, sometimes with herbs, capers or garlic. Check the ingredients: the best list olives and extra virgin olive oil near the top, without cheaper seed oils. Sparta Gourmet makes a Kalamata olive paste, and on Corfu Mavroudis sells olive pâté in its mill shop. See our Greek olive tapenade guide.

Agoureleo (early harvest oil)

Agoureleo, roughly “unripe oil” in Greek, is olive oil pressed from green, unripe olives at the start of the season, usually from around mid-October. Unripe olives give less oil, so it is made in small quantities and costs more. Expect a greener colour, a strongly bitter and peppery taste, and, according to Olive Oil Times, typically higher polyphenol levels. Halkidiki even has a PDO for it, Agoureleo Chalkidikis, which requires milling by 15 October.

On Lesvos, Protoulis makes Protoleo from unripe green olives, processed on the day of harvest or the next day. On Corfu, Enotis sells an early harvest oil called Agathon. Is it worth the price? Read our early harvest olive oil guide.

Flavoured oils

Flavoured or infused oils make easy gifts. On Corfu, Mavroudis lists chilli, orange, lemon, garlic, basil, rosemary and mint oils, and Enotis has a “Fusions” range with garlic, rosemary and kumquat. In Crete, Terra Creta sells an Infusions line, and in Halkidiki Toleo also stocks flavoured oils.

Two things to know. First, a flavoured oil is a convenience product rather than a showcase of the olive itself; if you want to taste a region, buy its plain extra virgin oil. Second, read the label to see what the base oil is and what has been added.

Olive-oil soap and cosmetics

Olive-oil soap is one of the best-value things in any Greek olive shop: light, cheap and long-lasting. Many producers sell their own: Toleo lists olive oil soap and cosmetics, Mavroudis sells local olive oil soaps, and MELAS near Epidaurus makes the Anastasia Bio-Care organic skin-care line based on its olive oil and honey. Check the ingredient list to see how much olive oil a soap actually contains; “with olive oil” can mean very little. For what olive oil can and can’t do for skin, see our skin benefits guide.

Olive wood

Bowls, spoons, chopping boards and salad servers in dense, striped olive wood are classic souvenirs, especially on Corfu and Crete. Mavroudis on Corfu sells olive-wood items in its shop. Wood should feel heavy and smooth, with no cracks along the grain. Hand-wash, never put it in the dishwasher, and rub it occasionally with a little food-safe oil. If you are flying outside the EU, check your destination’s rules on wooden items.

PDO products and what to check on the label

EU protected names tell you about origin. For a PDO (Protected Designation of Origin), every stage of production, processing and preparation must happen in the named area. For a PGI (Protected Geographical Indication), only one stage needs to. Greek PDO olive oils include Lygourio Asklipiou, which MELAS produces in Argolida. A PDO is a guarantee of where and how, not a quality score, so an excellent small producer may have no PDO at all.

For oil, the most useful things to check are:

Category: “extra virgin olive oil” is the top grade.
Harvest date or best-before date: fresher oil keeps its flavour better.
Producer and origin: a named estate or mill is more traceable than a vague “product of the EU”.
Container: dark glass or tins protect oil from light; tins also travel better.

Our Greek olive oil label guide goes through each line, and our storage guide explains how to keep what you bring home.

FAQ

Are Kalamata olives from a shop in Athens real Kalamata olives?

Only olives labelled with the Elia Kalamatas PDO are guaranteed to be Kalamon olives grown and processed in Messinia. Others may be the same variety from elsewhere.

What is the most unusual Greek olive to try?

Throumba: dry-salted, wrinkled and naturally debittered on the tree, with no brine at all.

Is agoureleo better than regular extra virgin oil?

It is different: greener, more bitter and peppery, and made in smaller quantities. Whether it is “better” depends on your taste and how you use it.

Can I order these products online instead?

Yes. Many producers in our directory ship; see our guide to buying Greek olives online.