Meet the Experts: How to choose olive oil with the most health benefits with Georgia and Todd Lowman, owners of Water & William Olive Oil Co.

Georgia and Todd Lowman, owners of Water & William Olive Oil Co.

Photo by Aaron Eisenhauer

Georgia and Todd Lowman, owners of Water & William Olive Oil Co., believe you are what you eat. That’s why they opened Water & William Olive Oil Co. in the historic River & Rails building in downtown Cape Girardeau in December 2022, to bring the health benefits of quality olive oils and balsamic vinegars to Southeast Missouri.

Extra-virgin olive oil is a healthy, monounsaturated fat that helps protect against inflammation and promotes good cardiovascular health. But to receive all of the health benefits, consumers need to ensure they’re buying the right kind.

The Lowmans source their olive oil from an Oakland, Calif., supplier that works with small-batch farmers in Chile, Tunisia, Portugal, Italy, Greece and Australia, to name a few. The supplier only sells to small boutique stores, so the product doesn’t spend part of its shelf life in a warehouse.

“Olive oil is like a bouquet of flowers. It’s not beautiful forever. It starts to break down, it starts to wilt, it starts to lose all of its beauty, all of its goodness,” Georgia says. “From the time olives are crushed, we as the consumer must be consuming it within two years.”

In the store, customers can taste olive oils and ask the Lowmans questions about each product. Each Fusti of olive oil displays a tag that lists its health markers, country of origin, crush date, what it pairs well with and what it can be used for. They bottle, cork and heat seal the oils at the shop.

Here, Georgia and Todd share tips for how to choose the healthiest olive oils for your kitchen:

1. Know the vocabulary.

Todd says many olive oils are diluted with other types of oils such as canola, vegetable and sunflower seed oils, which are not healthy. The key to ensuring the olive oil you’re buying has the maximum health benefit is decoding the terms on the label.

Extra-virgin means no other oils have been added. Cold-pressed means the crushing method did not use heat, which breaks down the olive oil and its benefits. And single-sourced means a third party hasn’t handled the olive oil; it has gone from farmer to supplier to retailer, which allows the retailer to know when, where and how the olives were crushed.

“Our olive oils are fresh, extra-virgin, cold-pressed, single-sourced,” Georgia says. “So, if it’s a concern to you to get good quality, you don’t have to worry. It’s good quality.”

2. Think about the flavors you cook with.

Water & William Olive Oil Co. offers single-variety olive oils, which Georgia says are best for those who drink a tablespoon of olive oil each day for the health benefits.

They also offer flavor-infused olive oils such as Tuscan herb, lemon and garlic; Georgia says the key to choosing the right one is to match the flavors you normally cook with to your olive oil.

“It really depends on what’s going on in your kitchen,” Georgia says.

3. Store it away from direct sunlight.

It’s important to store the olive oil in a place where it won’t be in the path of UV rays, which break down the olive oil and dilute the health benefits.

“When you’re purchasing olive oil, good quality is always represented in amber glass,” Georgia says. “Purchases of olive oil in clear plastic should be avoided.”

Water & William Olive Oil Co.
105 William St.
Cape Girardeau, Mo 63703
(573) 803-1616
Tuesdays through Fridays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

www.waterandwilliam.com