The old Press
Historical notes
In a document dated 1856 dealing with the cultivation of olive trees in Tignale it was written “…there were several presses drawn by animals…”.
The imposing and well-preserved screw press, that you can see here, dated 1869, was used in Piovere, a village in Tignale, until the middle of the twenty century; demonstrating the importance of olive cultivation in this area.
In 1958 the old press in Piovere was sold as a historical implement and placed in the grounds of a villa in Gardone Riviera; later, in 2004, when the co-operative celebrated its centenary, it was bought and donated to us by the shareholder Gianfranco Troielli.
Working of the press
To separate the oil must from the residues of the olives(°) it was necessary to crush the olive paste. The crushing of the paste was done
by compressing it firmly into its container.
The force for pressing was obtained by moving the beam fixed in the wheel clockwise; this, when turned, operated the vertical screw. The oil must, pressed out of the sides of the container, percolated onto the base and was then conveyed and collected in special containers.
(°) Solid residue resulting from crushing or grinding, made up of fragments of olive stones, peel and bits of pulp.