The Peranzana cultivar is mainly present in a specific area of Puglia, in the countryside of the municipalities of 3 towns, on the Alto Tavoliere delle Puglie in the province of Foggia. This tree is a pure cultivar, originally known as “Provenzale,” as it was imported from Provence. They were likely first brought here in the 1200s-1300s, and left due to their importance, but also because the environment suits them perfectly.
The area is a plain located on top of a pre-historic seabed, shielded by mountains and rivers, with a moderate climate. These trees have also taken to the soil which can only happen with time, as they have been present here for so long. The farmers perfected their techniques and soil amendments for these particular trees even further during these years. This has transformed them into the trees with the ability to produce a unique extra virgin olive oil with highly sought-after organoleptic and nutritional properties.
The oil has a full and captivating scent, which you can smell in the open air throughout the entire countryside. The peranzana extra virgin olive oil is characterized by low acidity and a very balanced taste. It has a distinct flavor and bitter, spicy kick with a high chlorophyll and carotene content. Its emerald green color and fruity taste are dominant characteristics. These trees have a low yield but the resulting oil is immediately consumable, highly desirable, and therefore, is highly valuable. It gives off an aroma of unripe tomato, artichoke, and aromatic herbs. It can be used for almost anything, is the perfect complement to delicate dishes, but especially wonderful with fish, shellfish, sauces and marinades. It is excellent for seasoning dishes, raw or cooked, using it to marinate, or as a finishing oil. It makes all the difference on salads and bread.
To learn more about the detailed history of the peranzana and this area,
click through the 'TIMELINE' on the left side of the page
The name of this area in pre-Roman times was Daunia, a place with lapygian tribes during the Bronze Age. These tribes made historic pottery and were a part of making this area and Apulian ceramics famous. This is why, in keeping with tradition, ZIO SAVINO sources its ceramic cruets from Apulia. The area has changed many times, from the Roman and Byzantine Empire to the Bourbons and modern day Italy. Many different cultures have left their mark in the area, from the Normans to the Saracens and Spanish. The oil of Daunia is known as Dauno DOP and is divided into 4 sub categories: Alto Tavoliere, Basso Tavoliere, Gargano, and Subappenino. Our EVOO comes from the original area from which it's olives have grown in Italy for nearly 1000 years, in their ideal environment and a terroir that cannot be replicated and has been molded across time to be perfect for the Peranzana trees. If you're interested in learning more about the extensive history of our Peranzana, or Provençal, olive and the area it grows, click through the 'TIMELINE'
(Map of the Daunia area, marking archeological sites)
For much time Apulia remained autonomous, but in 1018 Fiorentino was re-founded as a part of the Catapanate. Two Catapani (Captains) were sent to conquer Daunia, in order to strengthen the domination of the Empire in the southern peninsula and contributed to populating the Tavoliere of Apulia again. The town centre was part of the defense system of the northern border in Apulia, to defend the Byzantine Empire from enemy attacks. Recent excavations also suggest it was an important forum, a town with a cathedral and the Palatium (palace) of the emperor. Later it came under rule of the Normans, Hohenstaufen, Angevines, and the Aragonese. It is known for being the place where Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II , who was also Duke of Swabia and King of Sicily, Germany and Jerusalem, lived the end of his life. Though he died in Castel Fiorentino (Torremaggiore) in 1250, Frederick had many castles, palaces, and hunting residences throughout Daunia. Soon after his death, a legend developed that Frederick, known as Stupor Mundi (The Marvel of the World) was not dead but actually sleeping in the Kyffhauser Mountains and would one day awaken to reestablish his empire. You can often find German tourists in Torremaggiore still tracking every movement of the king. Learn more about Frederick II at stupormundi.it
(The first "Staufersele" statue, which was built at Castel Fiorentino in 2000)
TERRAE MAIORIS
In 1255, the villages of Fiorentino and Dragonara were attacked by Count Ruggero Sanseverino and the soldiers of Pope Alexander IV for remaining loyal to the Swabians. The residents of these villages took refuge near the Norman-Swabian castle. Here, next to a Benedictine monastery, they were able to start a new village, Terrae Maioris, in an area that locally became known as “Codacchio,” later in the 17th century, and was the centre of old Torremaggiore. The Ducal Castle was built here, around the 12th century, as a fortified estate. The castle was a fortress and for some time the home of the De Sangro Dukes, princes of the city of nearby San Severo. Renovated and finished in the 16th century, it still remains today showing the imprint left by the Swabians.
It was in this area that 'Terrae Maioris' became Torremaggiore and in the period that followed that the first peranzana (Provençal) olive trees were brought to the area from Provence. They were likely first brought by the Angevins around the 1300s and again by the De Sangro's in the 1700s. The area is located on the Alto Tavoliere, along the Tavoliere delle Puglie, which is a flat plain on top of a prehistoric seabed in between the Dauni Mountains to the west, the Fortore Valley to the north, the Gargano promontory and Adriatic Sea to the east, and the Ofanto river to the south. For these trees, it is the ideal growing environment, with moderately warm temperatures, sheltered from the wind and protected by mountains. Located in between today’s three small towns of San Paolo di Civitate, Torremaggiore, and San Severo along the Tavoliere, the area is renowned for its food and wine products, known as Dauno.
TORREMAGGIORE (FG), ITALY
Today, the oldest Peranzana trees still growing are in Torremaggiore, likely in Contrada (district) Reinella. Before an extreme frost in January 1979, the trees considered the oldest were in the Mortella district. Mortella was part of the ancient Feud (land) and is a few hundred meters from the remaining trees. Based on the growth coefficient from measuring younger trees we know the age of, these measure to be at least 600 years old, not accounting for weight lost over time. Many in the area, including Uncle Savino insisted they were about 1000 years old, and there was proof in that each meter of circumference of a tree trunk signifies 100 years in age, and there were trees with circumferences measuring 10 meters. Many of today’s production areas can also be traced back to the fief (estate) of De Sangro, a noble family that owned the lands for much time, beginning in 1083. Although Raimondo De Sangro takes most of the credit for bringing the trees in the 1700s, that was surely not the first time, as many of the trees are simply too old.
PROVENCE
Due to the age of these older trees, it seems likely that they arrived during a time that the Angevins were in the southern peninsula, or the Boot (Lo Stivale). Conditions would have been more favorable toward this Provencal variety based on the climate back then. At the time the Angevins were also a large part of history in this area and favored agriculture. They left evidence of their dominion, such as the circular towers that characterize the ancient villages and the countryside where many of these trees grow, and there are even groups of people today who still speak Franco-Provençal. There is also history connected to Charles I of Anjou who was count of Provence, a region in France, bordering Italy. It is located between the Rhone river, the Alps and the Tyrrhenian Sea. Provence is a region with a temperate climate, very similar to that of Torremaggiore, and boasts links with Greek civilization due to some ancient Greek colonies that settled along the Tyrrhenian coast in the 6th century BC. It would have been the Greeks who introduced the cultivation of the olive tree to Provence, which is still flourishing in that area. Characteristics that describe the Provence olive tree are eerily similar to the Peranzana! Learn more info about the arrival of the peranzana in Torremaggiore and that time period by clicking on the next tab, 'The Angevins,' under 'TIMELINE' and reading 'REINELLA GIOVANNA I.'
The Angevins were a royal house of French origin. Their name is derived from the province they came from: Anjou, located in today’s north-western part of France. They arrived in the south led by Charles I of Anjou, after being invited by Pope Urban IV to conquer the Kingdom of Apulia and Calabria, held by the Swabians, as well as Sicily. Manfredi, who was Emperor Frederick II’s illegitimate son, had been crowned King of Sicily, and the Pope wanted to put an end to kings rule. First Charles became senator (head of government) in Rome following Manfredi’s failed coup, who he then defeated in Benevento in 1266. Afterwards, resistance throughout the kingdom collapsed and many towns surrendered before his arrival as he continued through Apulia, eventually taking the island of Sicily and even Corfu and Albania. Welcomed joyfully by the Neapolitan people, he established a royal seat in Naples, which he held until his death in 1285 in Foggia. After having settled in this new Kingdom of Naples, the Angevins continued to rule over Provence which, triggered cultural and commercial exchanges with it and under Queen Giovanna I of Anjou (1327-1382), relations between the Kingdom of Naples and Provence became even more intense, due to the long period of peace and political stability that took place.
REINELLA GIOVANNA I
In 1331, at the age of 4, Giovanna I was designated queen by her grandfather Robert I of Anjou, but upon his death in 1343, Giovanna aged 16, was crowned Queen of Naples, Countess of Provence, and Queen of Jerusalem. 10 years earlier, in 1333, at the age of 6 she was married to her cousin, Andrew d'Anjou, prince of Hungary, who was just one year older than her. The wedding was celebrated throughout the kingdom and was the moment in which the term Reginella (young queen), or Reinella in Neapolitan, was coined by the people. On the occasion of the celebrations for the marriage, as a sign of love and subjection to the young queen, the people attributed the name Reinella or Reginella to different districts, which can still be found in today’s territories of the old Kingdom of Naples. Therefore, it is likely that our Reinella district in Torremaggiore was also named on that occasion.
The district, located on the outskirts of the town, was controlled by Giovanna’s grandmother, Sancha of Mallorca, who was the second wife of King Robert I of Anjou. After the death of her husband, Queen Sancha completely renounced the dominion, at which point the district was probably sold, as there were many economic problems during Giovanna’s reign, many due to the plague. These problems even led her to sell the Provençal city of Avignon to Pope Clement VI, on June 19, 1348 for 80,000 florins. Based on this information; the connection to the Reinella district, the relationship between the Kingdom of Naples and Provence, combined with the approximate age of our trees, context suggests that the Peranzana trees were planted before the sale of the district and in the 1300s.
This ancient fiefdom extends from the northeastern outskirts of the current town of Torremaggiore to the Radicosa canal (Canale di San Paolo), which marks the border between the countryside of Torremaggiore, San Paolo di Civitate and San Severo, and is where the propagation of the Peranzana began.
For most of the next five different centuries, the town was a fief (estate) of the noble De Sangro family, who descended from the ancient dukes of Burgundy. The De Sangro’s were the dukes of Torremaggiore, princes of San Severo and nobles of Castelnuovo and Casalvecchio. An illustrious member of the noble family was Raimondo De Sangro, born in Torremaggiore on January 30, 1710. He remains the most famous figure from Torremaggiore and in regards to the Peranzana trees. After studying at a Jesuit college in Rome, he spent his life successfully conducting experimental research in an array of fields and was an important figure of the early European Enlightenment.
PERANZANA
Amongst his many other skills and accomplishments listed below, Raimondo De Sangro was a sophisticated botanist, which led him to take secrets and ancient traditions from the farmers of Torremaggiore, attributing therapeutic potential to certain herbs and roots of wild plants, allowing him to use extracts and essences for the treatment of diseases and to obtain textile fibers. It was through his visits to the noble families he was related to in France that he had the opportunity to learn of the olive trees of Provence, which he then imported to the countryside of his fief. Today, in the municipalities falling within the De Sangro fiefdoms, about 6500 hectares of Peranzana olive groves are still cultivated.
OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS
- He was a soldier, military strategist, scientist, alchemist, inventor, writer, freemason, philosopher, and an enlightened Rosicrucian that contributed to the development of modern science and medicine. He also spoke several European languages, as well as Arabic and Hebrew.
- In 1742 he wrote the Great Vocabulary of Military and Land Art, which he also practiced in the field, repulsing the Austrians in the battle of Velletri in 1744, as Colonel of the Regiment of Capitanata. He also wrote and published the Practice of Military Exercises for Infantry and received praise from the highest European courts.
- In 1743 his literary works earned him the Academic title of the Crusca of Florence and the Sacra Accademia Fiorentina, the oldest established linguistic institution in the world. -
- Invented an eternal flame with chemical compounds and designed the first pyrotechnic theater (Fireworks show)
- Discovered methods to stagnate copper, to produce agate, jasper, lapis lazuli and other artificial precious stones, as well as to to color every kind of marble, obtain a synthetic wax from plants that was the same quality as beeswax, and even the desalination of sea water.
- Invented a carriage capable of moving on land and in the sea, a multi-color printing press, as well as the first breech-loading rifle and a new iron alloy cannon, lighter than the one supplied by the Bourbon army.
- Reconstructed and decorated the Cappella Sansevero in Naples. He commissioned the sculpture 'Veiled Christ,' in which it is said he taught the sculptor to turn cloth into crystalline marble. He also commissioned a pair of models, the 'Anatomical Machines,' that represent the human circulatory system and two skeletons. Though formed of metal wire, wax, and silk, it was believed to be of natural origin for a long time due to its detail and the real skeletons. Both of these exhibits are still on display at the chapel.
- Invented a hydraulic machine that used rainwater, collected in tanks, to provide motive power to factories. It used the energy from the wind and the force of gravity to pump water to any height.
- Almost two centuries before the discovery of active substances in cytostatic chemotherapy, he administered cancer chemotherapy to two patients, in a relevant way, using the extracts of an alkaloid like periwinkle.
- Before his death, in 1771, he destroyed his scientific archive and anything that remained was destroyed by his family so that nothing would found by authorities or the Church.
(Raimondo De Sangro statue at Castello Ducale in Torremaggiore)
The last prince of San Severo was Michele De Sangro, who was born in Naples on June 14, 1824 and died in Torremaggiore on February 5, 1890. After being exiled to Paris, he devoted his life to the study of agriculture, visiting the most famous institutes in France such as the school of Grignon and learning the agricultural methods of Great Britain. Around 1870, after Napoleon III and the Bourbons fell and the French Third Republic was established, De Sangro and Elisa Croghan, who he had met in Paris, returned to his homeland of Torremaggiore. Here, with the help of the illustrious botanist and his father-in-law, Ugo Croghan, he used his extensive funds to improve cultivation methods and replace the labor of horses and men with British and American style steam-powered agricultural machines. He was the first to introduce the olive oil mill to Puglia!
FUTURE DEVELOPMENT
By the 19th century the consumption of the olive oil had still been reserved for the cities and the wealthier class, but the unification of Italy in the 1860s brought an end to the feudal system. In addition, thanks to these new production efficiencies, it was fully spread to use by every day families by the end of the century and there was an increase in olive farming. In 1906, the Apulia Aqueduct, the largest in Italy, was constructed and in 1928, it was connected to the new reservoirs for San Severo and Torremaggiore. This further spurred on the development of agriculture in this area known as "the granary of Italy." After the large migration out of southern Italy in the 1950s and 1960s, Torremaggiore became characterized by agricultural development and known as a city of extra virgin olive oil, wheat and wine that it markets nationally and abroad. The oil is so strong that much of it is sold in bulk across the country, both to distributors and companies making their own blends, often to balance the cheaper oils. Puglia is also known as the region with the best and most olive oil, with over 370,000 hectares, accounting for the majority, or about 35% of the national total, with an average production of 10 million tons. Of that, the Dauno area only produces over 280 tons, which creates a high demand for our oil.
- In 1627 Torremaggiore was demolished by a catastrophic earthquake that shook the Tavoliere. Described as the “Great Earthquake of 1627” the area, now the province of Foggia, was struck. According to a farmer from San Severo, it was the height of summer and at that time of year in the area, the afternoon heat was so unbearable that the streets were deserted and practically everyone was enclosed in their home. Although they were lucky not to be closer to the coast, as a tsunami swept away towns and villages near the shore, few structures and people survived and everything in Torremaggiore and San Severo had to be rebuilt. Even now, the oldest, official traces of our family can only be traced back to the 1600s (although there is a village named Cicerale that the Arogonese, Swabians, and Sanseverinos were involved with in the 1500s!)
- Between 1656-1658, the plague of Naples killed about 80% of the population of the Kingdom of Naples, up to 1,250,000 people, and severely impacted economic and social structures. - The Unification of Italy took place in 1860, as General Giuseppe Garibaldi conquered the area in what was then the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, in Autumn, increasing his numbers by use of religion and promising peasants land. This was on behalf of Victor Emmanuel II and the new Kingdom of Italy.
- After meeting with members from the ex Bourbon court, bandit Michele Caruso assumed the informal role of colonel and was tasked with organizing a revolt against the new government. From 1861 to 1863, Caruso and his group of gangs terrorized municipalities with guerilla warfare tactics aimed toward the army, Carabinieri, and National Guard, with unprecedented violence that often ended in losses for both sides. In Torremaggiore, on March 17, 1862, one of his gangs, led by Carmine Crocco, defeated a platoon of Italy’s troops, killing 21 soldiers and their captain.
- After being delayed by World War I, on August 25, 1925, thanks to the work of engineer Luigi Grassi, “the first and only tramway of Daunia” was built in Torremaggiore, creating a link to the Adriatic railway. After two years, the connection was completed to a San Severo station. This allowed for not just the rapid transport of goods, which led to commercial expansion, but also of people, bringing progress toward ending social and cultural isolation.
USA
- Fortunato Gallo was born in Torremaggiore in 1878, and at 18 moved to the USA, founding and directing the largest mobile opera company in the country. In 1927, he opened the Gallo Opera House in New York City, which is now the famous Studio 54!
- In the United States in the 1920s, there was a great deal of fear of anarchists due to the Red Scare, along with a lot of anti-Italian sentiment. In 1927 Boston, Massachusetts, the case against Italian anarchists Nicola Sacco, of Torremaggiore, and Bartolomeo Vanzetti captivated and divided the public . The two men were convicted, by an openly biased judge, based on circumstantial evidence and executed, despite years of appeals and demonstrations across the world. This is something remembered in Torremaggiore until this day, and from which the Sacco family never recovered. There is a street named for them in the town, Via Sacco e Vanzetti. Learn more at saccoevanzetti.it
- In 2004, TORREMAGGIORE and BUFFALO, NEW YORK became twin cities. This is set up to promote international programs and projects and was started due to the relationship already created by a program between a high school in each city, in which they have a student exchange program. Learn more at https://www.torremaggiorebuffalo.it/
(The second inauguration of the tram on August 19, 1927)
Born in 1921, Savino spent his entire life in Torremaggiore. He was married to our father's aunt, Margherita Cicerale. Although he was our father's aunt's husband, to us he was simply zio, or uncle. 'Zio' and 'zia' are liberally used because down there, family is family, so to us, he was simply Zi' Savi, as is often used instead in the area. Savino was a farmer his entire life. He spent each and every day on the land, tending to the fields, but most importantly to the grape vines and olive trees, as wine and olive oil are of utmost importance! For us, his clementines were also the best in the world! When we visited he would take us with him to the fields and then back to his house, which our great grandfather built, to enjoy the fruits of our labor and tell stories. We would always pick around the seeds and Savino thought it was so strange, and when we would tell him about seedless fruit in America, such as grapes, he would not believe us! He thought it can't be possible! Grapes without seeds!? Our favorite story he told us was that during the war, although against fascism, he was captured by the British. Locked in his cell, he would see the soldiers eating raw potatoes and every day, seeing this, he would yell at them, saying what's wrong with you, you can't eat like that! Of course they didn't understand Italian and he didn't understand English. Eventually as days passed, the British soldiers decided to let him out of the cell to see what he wanted. Immediately he took the raw potatoes out of each of their hands and went straight to cooking... Each day after, it became tradition for him to be allowed out of the cell to cook and eat well with the soldiers until the war finally ended and he was freed. After all that time, he did learn how to say 'hello' and 'thank you' which he loved to just say to us causing hysterical laughter! He will always be who we remember when we think about these fields and this EVOO. During our annual visit in 2018, Savino passed away, aged 97, and is forever missed.
(Savino looking over the Peranzana trees he used to tend to)
(A picture of Savino that was the inspiration in the making of our logo)
