When in the world of travel and Olive oil and Real olives it is really easy to want to be in Provence. I have to tell you though, that there are more than a few Olive Oil Zealots all over the south of France right now and the COOPERATIVE L'OULIBO west of Montpellier in Bize Minervois is one of them. But make no mistake when you drive down the road to the cooperative: the terrain is very similar to Provence. And this terroire shows in the oils and complex flavors of their olives. They are stellar. They keep trudging at quality in the form of harvesting discipline (less than 14 hours) and when called for, two- phase extraction (not all folk in Europe have surrendered to that wonderful idea). The lively Cuvée Picholine is still crushed with a NEW granite wheel, because a little oxygen HELPS the flavor. The soft buttery elixir of the Cuvée Lucques, distinctive for their fruity flavor and crescent shaped pit, is surrendered to the two phases. The COOPERATIVE L'OULIBO makes unique FRENCH tasting olive oils without defects. Since they make oil and they have olives they also make three different olives in jars that comply with FDA standards so they're available here: Picholine olives in brine; Green Lucques in brine; and best of all BLACK (tree-ripened) Lucques. All this glory without the cost of Provence!