Three weeks ago we wrote about the olive harvest in Tuscany - this week we can’t pass up the opportunity to tell you about an event to strike oil – that is, olive oil - Stateside.

On November 7, Pietra Santa Winery is hosting its first annual “Olive Experience” in the picturesque Cienega Valley outside of Monterey, California. Wine and Olive Oil Maker Alessio Carli will guide you on a day long adventure where you’ll “get your hands dirty” learning how to harvest olives. You’ll also learn how to combine traditional techniques with modern technology to craft a premium bottle of extra virgin organic olive oil, using the winery’s state of the art Pieralisi Press.

After you return from picking olives and spending time on the crush pad, a garden lunch and dinner including wines from Pietra Santa will be provided on the winery grounds, with Alessio and winery owners, the Blackburn family.

To commemorate your trip, you’ll take home your own bottle of premium extra virgin organic olive oil that you helped to produce, along with a bottle of premium artisan wine from Pietra Santa.

That’s what we call striking it rich!