Large Capacho

Description

Large handmade capacho (carpet)

Diameter 70 cm

Uses:

The capacho was a fundamental piece of the press. Machine that separated the virgin olive oil from the rest of the components of the olive. At present these mats are being used in decoration, as floor mats, picture frames, etc..

History

Olive oil production methods are different from what they used to be. the process is the same before as today, but now faster, more hygienic methods are used to produce higher quality olive oil.

Previously the stone was used and the press with capachos. The latter, the capacho, has remained as a piece of decoration, as we saw at the beginning. In the stone the olive was poured and this crushed the olive and produced a uniform paste, constituted by the stone, the pulp and the virgin olive oil. The press was used to separate the oil from the rest of the components. The press was formed by a pile of capachos and between each capacho the uniform mass of the olive was placed. Once all the mats were filled, they were pressed with the press, and the virgin olive oil was filtered through the mats. Inside the capachos was the alperujo, the mass that was left over; the stone and the pulp of the olive.

Nowadays this method is in disuse, for several reasons; the oil takes flavors of nylon, when the virgin olive oil is in contact with the capachos; greater oxidation of the virgin olive oil for having greater contact with the oxygen and being the slower process; greater consumption of water and production of pollutants; discontinuous process; etc.