Señorío de Guadalest, tradition with a great future

The olive oil company was just founded one year ago and El Señorío de Guadalest is totally focussing on business differentiation with native varieties and renovating abandoned olive trees.

From Alicante, in the Cordillera Betica, 3 young CEOs are at the forefront of this brand. Jorge Segui, Alberto Valle and Pablo Guinot are the new generation of producers. On immediate horizon, a new very special monovarietal olive oil.

Alberto, you and your business partners are a very young entrepreneurs. How did this project start?

Our partner Jorge owns fields in the área. We all are entrepreneurs under 25 years old. We are located in a town in Alicante, in Beniarda, next to Guadalest. We try to recover the abandoned olive trees in the area, clear the fields and plots to plant olive trees and produce olive oil.

The project goes further because the town is at risk of depopulation, it has less than 200 inhabitants.

You produce olive oil in the Guadalest Valley, in the Cordillera Betica. What is the landscape like?

The Guadalest Valley is between mountains and our fields are at a high altitude, which makes it difficult to maintain due to the lack of rain and the cold, but we try to recover the abandoned fields and olive trees in the area.

You work with several varieties of native olives, What are they?

Yes, we work with four. The arbequina, which is perhaps the best known and three others, which are native and not so common or especially well known. Alfafarenca, blanqueta and Manzanilla Villalonga

In the harvesting process, you combine the technical part and the manual part. How do you do it?

In the technical process we use a clamp that joins the trunk of the olive tree and the olives fall into the umbrella. It is the most effective and fastest method. On the other hand, the manual process consists of using machines but smaller ones and also, we have to go branch by branch, in those where there are more olives.

Fort he moment. you have two olive oils: Extra Virgin and Organic. What is the difference between them?

The Extra Virgin´s flavour is is stronger than the organic one. This is so because of the use of chemicals. The fields of Extra Virgin oil are treated with chemicals and end up affecting the intensity of the oil. The organic field, having none of that, varies in flavor, it is somewhat milder.

Organic certifications take a long time: analyzing the oil and sales controls to the ecological committee. It doesn’t sell as much as Extra Virgin because many consumers get carried away by the price.

If we talk about pairings, what do these oils go well with?

They pair well with salads, especially with tomatoes because it is slightly fruity. Restaurants that have it also use it to cook meats, for example, or with cheeses, pouring a little on top.

Your brand image is fun, fresh, young… How important is branding for you?

95% of sales come through marketing. We try to focus our networks, especially Instagram and our website, on promotions and telling who we are. We have been in the company for a short time, we are looking for visibility and with different content with a touch of fun.

Do you have new products in mind?

Yes, we are processing a new product. It is a more gourmet olive oil made with manzanilla Villalonga, something special that comes in a cylindrical can from an ancient olive tree. We seek differentiation with this monovarietal. The olive is more bitter and the flavor is more intense and we have achieved a surprising balance. The aroma, an aspect that is highly valued, is fascinating. For those who like extra pure oil, it is highly recommended. We want to make ourselves known for other products that no one else has.

Why did you join Spainery?

We were struck by the fact that you worked with all of Europe. We can get in touch with europeans retailers and also manage your own profile. We are young, we are not in a hurry and we know the pace at which projects go.

Here you can find Señorío de Guadalest (Valbaral Group) products