And does it beautifully. People often forget that Albania is a Mediterranean country with the perfect climate for olive cultivation. Even more significant, Albania is vastly untouched by humans, leaving the ground fertile, with little pollution, and olive trees are never mass produced. What you receive is the most pure form of nature olive oil can provide.

How do you even name an Olive Oil brand? The name “Donika” made perfect sense for us. Andronika (Donika) Kastrioti was a noblewoman in the 1400’s from the south of Albania, from the village of Kanina within Vlore, that was home to the Kalinjot olive variety. When marrying Skanderbeg from the North, the two united the country, and created an unwritten rule that every newlywed couple would plant 10 new olive trees, which are the very trees that grace our groves today. Donika is the epitome of Albanian culture, where our goal is to honor and serve the hardworking Albanians who have been perfecting their craft for centuries. The taste and smell of Albanian heritage is poured into every bottle, to perfectly capture the essence of the Mediterranean.

Besides being absolutely delicious with an unbelievably high count of polyphenols, after the October/November harvest, you can have Donika at your house by December! Many brands package their EVOO and send it to the U.S. for sale by March. At Donika, we believe in serving you the absolute freshest EVOO possible, which is why we don’t bottle your EVOO until you hit “Order”! Harvesting early and cold-pressing are the best methods to preserve phenolic content, though they yield less oil. Lower quality olive oil extraction typically results in a 25% oil-to-olives ratio. In contrast, truly high-phenolic olive oils yield only 8-12%. We are also currently working on incorporating our pomace (remainder of olive not used), into recyclable means.
Furthermore, the rest of our sustainability and fair-trade practices ensure that we are executing our processes for the utmost respect to the environment and individuals working at Donika.

Immediately after you place your order for a Set-of-3 of Donika Olive Oil, we receive the order at our production facilities in Vlore. Rather than grabbing a box off the shelves, we grab each individual bottle, hand fill it from a food-grade stainless steel tank that keeps your EVOO ultra fresh, hand label each bottle, and screw on each top then and there. The next day it is boxed up and shipped off through DHL to arrive at your house in 3-5 days.

Our analysis of our EVOO comes from the prestigious World Olive Center for Health and can be found here (link). This certificate is proof of individual compounds that we so proudly promote. A new certificate analysis is conducted soon after every harvest.

Early harvest olives, such as Donikas olives, are picked before they are fully ripe, normally at the end of October, resulting in several benefits. These olives have higher levels of antioxidants and nutrients, producing oil with a robust, peppery, and fruity flavor, and lower acidity, which signifies higher quality and longer shelf life. However, early harvest yields less oil, making production more labor-intensive and costly.

The acidity level of Donika Olive Oil is 0.17%. This confirms the extra virginity of the oil, as the reference point is <0.80%

We source our olives just down the road from where they are produced into your favorite extra virgin olive oil! Unlike most EVOO’s, we do not have cultivated rows of trees that were recently planted. Our trees are naturally occurring from the hills of Skrofotina, Cerkovina, Zvernec, and Travllazer, dating back all the way to the 1400’s. This is difficult to certify organic, but Albania’s land is so pristine, we have been able to certify all of our trees through the USDA and EU.

To fully reap the benefits of your purchased Donika, we recommend having at least 2 tbsp a day. This can be drizzled over a salad, dipped in your favorite sourdough bread, or our favorite way – taking it as a shot before breakfast! These quantities are only recommended for Donika Olive Oil as you’ll need much more for a less nutritional oil.