Istarska Bjelica
also called Istrska belica (SI), Bianchera (IT), Bijelica, Plemenita belicaOne of the highest-phenol commercial cultivars documented in the northern Adriatic: 642 mg/kg against Leccino’s 199 in the same trial. The phenol fraction is unusually rich in oleocanthal, which is exactly what produces its hallmark throat burn.
| Also called | Istrska belica (SI), Bianchera (IT), Bijelica, Plemenita belica |
|---|---|
| Main regions | Istria and Kvarner (HR), coastal Slovenia, Trieste province (IT) |
| Purpose | Oil only |
| Oleic acid | Described as high; no numeric range published |
| Oil yield | 16.5% at a very early harvest |
| Harvest | Now from mid-October; historically Nov–Dec |
| Tolerances | Cold- and bora-hardy; very sensitive to fly, moth, peacock spot |
In the grove
Aroma and flavour descriptors
- 1Freshly mown grass
- 2Ripe olive fruit
- 3Green apple
- 4Bitter almond
Catalogue descriptors plus instrumental volatile data: the compounds above the odour threshold in this cultivar are 1-penten-3-one, E-2-hexenal, hexanal and Z-2-penten-1-ol. Notably its C6 volatiles are lower than Leccino’s — the intensity comes from phenols, not green volatiles.
Ordered by how often each recurs in the published varietal literature, not by measured intensity. Our panel has not scored a monovarietal Istarska Bjelica oil, and no sensory panel data for it is published. 40 of the 40 varieties here read the same way.
This shelf fills when the panel scores an oil made from this variety. 19 of the 40 varieties here are in the same state today.
Sources
- IOC World Catalogue of Olive Varieties
- Phenolic and volatile compounds in Leccino and Istarska Bjelica oils, Food Technol. Biotechnol.
- Oleocanthal quantification in Bianchera/Belica oil, Molecules 26(1):242
Every figure on this page carries a source. Where we could not find one we say so rather than estimating. Corrections are welcome and credited.