When the 2026 NYIOOC results came in and we saw Yapapi next to another Gold Award, the first thing I felt wasn't relief. It was gratitude. Because I know what we went through to get here.
The year that didn't go as planned
2025 started with real promise. Through August, the trees looked healthy, the fruit was developing well, and everything pointed to one of our best seasons yet.
Then September arrived.
Daily rain, heavy and all-day long, combined with temperatures sitting between 28 and 31°C. That combination is one of the worst things that can happen to olive fruit: sustained warmth and moisture together deteriorate the crop quickly, drive up acidity, and strip away quality you simply cannot recover later in the process.
Western Greece was hit hard during that period. Many producers in our region saw serious losses.
The decision that made the difference
We chose to move the harvest early, before the weather could do more damage. It wasn't a simple call. An early harvest means less volume. The fruit hasn't reached its full weight yet. You get less oil per tree.
But you get better oil.
This logic isn't new to us. It sits at the core of how we work. We never trade quality for quantity. And when the weather pushes back, that philosophy gets tested in a very real way.
What NYIOOC is, and why 2026 feels different
The NYIOOC (New York International Olive Oil Competition) is the largest and most respected olive oil quality contest in the world. Hundreds of producers from more than 30 countries submit samples each year. Judging is completely blind: no labels, no names, no origin on the table. Only the oil speaks.
In 2025, we won our first Gold, on our debut entry. It meant a great deal to us.
The 2026 Gold is something else. It isn't beginner's luck. It is confirmation: what we do works, even in difficult years. Especially in difficult years.
What we learned
Two Gold Awards in a row gave us clear proof of something we believed but hadn't yet demonstrated:
Quality isn't the result of a good year. It's the result of the right decisions under pressure.
The weather is never in our hands. The harvest timing, the way we handle the fruit, the moment we decide to move and not wait — those are in our hands.
That, for me, is the real meaning of this award.
If you'd like to try the olive oil that earned Gold two years running, you can find it here. →