Divinity olive oils from Mangawhai. Photo / Supplied
Michael and Leanne Chinnery have had a long love affair with Italy. After living and travelling overseas for many years, they had romantic dreams of an Italian-style existence back in New Zealand. They couldn't believe their luck when they found 4ha of beautiful fertile land in Mangawhai. They bought it,
but being from a finance and IT background weren't exactly sure what they were going to do with it.
Michael had read a lot about the health benefits of olive oil so, with the advice of friends, they planted 1300 olive trees in the hope of producing oil. This was in 2003 and in 2007 they handpicked their first harvest. Turns out they were pretty good at it, award-winningly good in fact. Divinity has now won Gold and Silver Medals at the internationally acclaimed Los Angeles International Extra Virgin Olive Oil Awards for three years consecutively.
Michael and Leanne have fallen in love with the process and have become extremely passionate olive oil producers. They have planted traditional Tuscan varietals: frantoio, leccino and pendolino and produce two types of oil. The frantoio, made from a small green olive, is the grassier of the two and has a very fresh aroma and lighter mouth-feel. It is perfect for salads and especially good for dipping with dukkah. The leccino, from a larger black variety, is more buttery and great for drizzling over fresh pasta or serving with balsamic and a crusty loaf of ciabatta. They are both ONZ certified, a New Zealand certification based on the International Olive Council (IOC) standards for extra virgin olive oil.
An Auckland chef who uses their oils every day says they tried a lot of brands before settling on Divinity as they felt it had the depth they had been looking for. It's also the one that came up trumps in their numerous blind tastings with customers.
Though the oils are truly marvellous well deserve international acclaim, we have also fallen head over heels in love with their Pomegranate Balsamic. It's a 5-year-old balsamic vinegar from Modena that they import and blend with pomegranate juice and it is the most exquisite summery salad splash ever. The sweet and tart flavours are in perfect balance. Leanne suggests drizzling it on full-flavoured meats in winter. We would go as far as to say it's a pantry essential.
