WE LOVE EXCELLENCE
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EVGE is a company founded upon excellent products and principles. Our mission is to bring international recognition to the many remarkably delicious and healthy Greek products. We carefully select products of exceptional quality and taste and offer them under the label of EVGE, which is an exclamation of praise and approval, meaning exceptionally done!
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Behind the Label
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EVGE in Greece is managed by John Papageorgiou whose passion for high quality culinary products inspired him to launch EVGE in 2012. He is a certified Olive Oil Expert and Sommelier. He and his wife, Rania, searched Greece for regions to find the highest quality extra virgin olive oil and have expanded to other exceptional Greek food products. EVGE's goal is to offer natural products of extraordinary quality that excite the palate and nourish the body. In the spirit of excellence, which is the meaning of εὖγε (EVGE), John and Rania have chosen their suppliers carefully so that all align with EVGE’s philosophy. They are passionate about maintaining the authenticity and high quality of the Greek harvest and its final products. |
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Carol Rogers Papaletsos, owner of Ambrosia, LLC, is the exclusive distributor of EVGE products in the United States. She was born and raised in Columbia, South Carolina, but her spirit is Greek. She received a degree in Modern Greek Studies at Boston University, and further developed her love for Greek culture and cooking while living in Greece for over twenty years. She returned to her hometown to share her passion for authentic Greek cuisine, establishing Ambrosia . However, frustration by the lack of high quality Greek products on the market in the US led to a search which culminated in her partnership with EVGE. Carol is excited to offer and share EVGE's incredible products with those also passionate about deliciously wholesome food! |
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EVGE and Ancient tradition
25 km from the groves of EVGE is Nestor's Palace, the Mycenaean Bronze Age site where 3200 year-old olive oil jars were found. It is said that Nestor's youngest daughter, Polykaste, bathed Telemachos, son of Odysseus when he came searching for his father. Homer describes her anointing him with oil: 'bathing him first, then rubbing him with oil. She held fine cloths and a cloak to put around him when he came godlike from the bathing place'.
25 km from the groves of EVGE is Nestor's Palace, the Mycenaean Bronze Age site where 3200 year-old olive oil jars were found. It is said that Nestor's youngest daughter, Polykaste, bathed Telemachos, son of Odysseus when he came searching for his father. Homer describes her anointing him with oil: 'bathing him first, then rubbing him with oil. She held fine cloths and a cloak to put around him when he came godlike from the bathing place'.
Why region is important:
EVGE Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO), USDA certified organic EVOO and Kalamata olives are produced in the exceptional region for growing olives--Kalamata (Messenia). The groves are 1100 feet above sea level and just 12 km from the sea, bringing the olives beneficial sea breezes and enhancing flavor. The trees are on slopes, which is important because they drink just as much rain water as needed and not too much, which decreases quality and flavor.
Harvest:
For EVOO, olives are gathered in autumn when they are just beginning to ripen by using a "tree tickling machine" which causes them to fall onto a canvas laid beneath the trees. Then, they are hand picked and put into crates (so that they can breath and are not crushed as they would be in burlap bags) and taken immediately to a cool storage area at the press.
Why cold pressed is important:
Within 3 days of picking, they are cold pressed at temperatures not exceeding 25C or 77F. This is important because high temperature processing, while producing 3 times more oil, raises acidity and destroys the many nutritional properties of EVOO, such as polyphenols and other health-protective antioxidants.
Why low acidity is important:
Acidity is considered one of the most important properties of quality in olive oil, although one rarely sees it listed on bottles due to the fact that big olive oil producers have lobbied to keep it off labels. The lower, the better for retaining nutritional benefits and for an olive oil to have the label Extra Virgin, it must by law, have an acidity of no higher than 0.8%. Every year EVGE has its EVOO tested for oleic acidity and it has never exceeded 0.3%, which is one of the lowest one can find and indicative of EVGE's extraordinary quality.
EVGE Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO), USDA certified organic EVOO and Kalamata olives are produced in the exceptional region for growing olives--Kalamata (Messenia). The groves are 1100 feet above sea level and just 12 km from the sea, bringing the olives beneficial sea breezes and enhancing flavor. The trees are on slopes, which is important because they drink just as much rain water as needed and not too much, which decreases quality and flavor.
Harvest:
For EVOO, olives are gathered in autumn when they are just beginning to ripen by using a "tree tickling machine" which causes them to fall onto a canvas laid beneath the trees. Then, they are hand picked and put into crates (so that they can breath and are not crushed as they would be in burlap bags) and taken immediately to a cool storage area at the press.
Why cold pressed is important:
Within 3 days of picking, they are cold pressed at temperatures not exceeding 25C or 77F. This is important because high temperature processing, while producing 3 times more oil, raises acidity and destroys the many nutritional properties of EVOO, such as polyphenols and other health-protective antioxidants.
Why low acidity is important:
Acidity is considered one of the most important properties of quality in olive oil, although one rarely sees it listed on bottles due to the fact that big olive oil producers have lobbied to keep it off labels. The lower, the better for retaining nutritional benefits and for an olive oil to have the label Extra Virgin, it must by law, have an acidity of no higher than 0.8%. Every year EVGE has its EVOO tested for oleic acidity and it has never exceeded 0.3%, which is one of the lowest one can find and indicative of EVGE's extraordinary quality.
