Would you like to know where our organic extra virgin olive oil "Dafni" comes from?
We travel with you to the island of Crete in Greece to find the origin of our Greek organic extra virgin olive oil Dafni. On the north-eastern coast the port city of Sitia is situated. The Venetian fortress Kazarma towers over stylish neoclassical buildings, which are built around the bay like an amphitheatre.
From there, a curvy 22km long street leads to the protected mountain region with the olive groves of the "Koroneiki" variety. Olive oils from this region are bearing the EU sign for protected designations of origin (PDO). They represent the guarantee of locally harvested and pressed olives.
In the middle of this region you will find the small village of Dafni. It lies at 750m altitude on the slope of a mountain. The central market square is characterized by an ancient plantane. There are also ruins here, which go back to pre-Minoan times.
Why is it called "Dafni"?
The village owes its name to the many "picrodafnen" (oleanders) that grow in the banks of its streams and rivers. During the flowering period, the oleanders with their white-purple flowers give the place an image of fantastic beauty and enormous natural shine.
An old local verse (Mantinada) says «Δάφνη με τα κρύα νερά και με τις Κοπελιές σου», which can be translated as «Dafni with your cold waters and with your young girls» and indicates the many rivers in the region, which make in winter, due to the impetuous water masses, several paths and even entire areas inaccessible.