The first “Abbraccio” extra virgin olive oil was born in 2007 thanks to Mirko Rossi who, together with his family, decided to make their dream come true: to produce Olivastra Seggianese oil directly from the family’s olive trees. “Love”, “passion” and “innovation” are the three constants that accompany Mirko in the countryside activities and in the production of “Abbraccio”, an olive oil capable of making itself known and appreciated on Mount Amiata and in the rest of the world.
History and technological innovation are the two tracks on which the company is located in Seggiano, in the province of Grosseto moves forward. This already emerges from the name of the oil which retains a double meaning. The first one refers to a strong link with the past, when technology was not yet at the side of mountain women and men. A neologism therefore “Abbraccio” born from the Italian expression “a braccio” in reference to the ancient way of picking olives, with the hands. While the second one indicates the extraordinary ability of the oil to embrace many different foods, becoming the main food item of the table.
For Mirko, the connection with the past should also be found in the first olive trees, those inherited from his grandfather, many of these centuries-old, from which the first “Abbraccio” branded bottles were born. On the other hand, innovation has been introduced slowly, over the years the Seggianese company has brought high-tech elements to support agricultural practices with the main objective of improving the quality of the oils, guaranteeing their authenticity, and giving them greater freshness, all without failing to respect nature and environmental sustainability.
In olive growing “to make quality you need speed” especially during harvesting activities, that’s why with the increase of the plants, which in 10 years went from 250 to over 3,000, a further step forward for the company was to buy a shaker that intervenes directly on the olive trees and an excavator equipped with a vibrating comb. While the first machine does not touch the olives that fall on the cloth and are brought to local oil mills, the second tool allows the collection of the fruits left on the plant, also minimizing waste. Optimizing harvesting times has allowed Abbraccio oils to preserve all the organoleptic properties of Olivastra Seggianese olives.
The other important step taken by Mirko was having believed in the cultivar that grows only on the “rough” and “rocky” slopes of the impervious Mount Amiata, with the conviction that it could make its way among the Italian PDOs. From the will of both the young farmer and other Amiata olive growers, the Consorzio Olio Seggiano Dop was born a few years ago, which today has about 20 producers and which is making Olivastra Seggianese oil known throughout the world.
For some years now, in addition to “Abbraccio Classico“, Mirko has also been producing “Abbraccio Dop“, which represents the real flagship product of the company, made exclusively from green olives harvested in the first days of October, this allows flavors and aromas to be more long-lasting. The two oils are different from each other, but both are exquisitely refined and able to bring the peculiar character of Amiata to the table.
