If you've got a finely tuned palate and an appreciation for olive oil, the Department of Primary Industries has an offer for you.
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The DPI is offering a free olive oil sensory course, starting on March 3, and those who successfully complete the program could be invited to join the Australian olive oil sensory panel, Wagga, where they will have the chance to classify olive oil from across Australia and overseas.
Participants in the course will learn how to classify olive oil and recognise aromas and flavours of fresh mowed grass, pepper, green banana, eucalyptus to name a few, as they find what makes extra virgin olive oil a premium oil.
For the past four years, Wagga artist Denis O'Connor has been tasting and smelling olive oils.
He is just one of the volunteers on the Australian olive oil sensory panel, Wagga, a body that helps to decide whether the oil that lines supermarket shelves succeeds in gaining that "extra virgin" title.
Mr O'Connor says the sensory experience of classifying oil appealed to him.
"There are some that smell of freshly cut grass, while others can have quite a flowery fragrance," he said.
Accredited experts will train participants to appreciate the sensory aspects, flavour and aroma, of olive oil and identify defects and the cause of defects
For more information on the course, call 6938 1957 or email sensorypanel.wagga@dpi.nsw.gov.au.