  
Consumer's were first introduced to CRESPI SAN REMO products in the early 80's by Georgio DeLuca of DEAN & DELUCA who identified CRESPI SAN REMO products to carry the "Dean & DeLuca Selection" seal on the label. For years, the Crespi products bore that moniker considered by many in the specialty industry to be the equivalent of the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval. Anyone who has tasted CRESPI SAN REMO products will agree they are unique and distinctive, and it all began in 1770 with olive groves and two olive mills. In 1914, Crespi's signature extra virgin olive oil was awarded a gold medal at the International Exhibition in Genoa. Led today by patriarch Livio Crespi and son Roberto, the product range includes unique sauces in addition to the olive oil. The products are made in Ceriana Italy, located in the western part of the Liguria region, Italy's Costa Di Fiore along the Mediterranean Sea. Ceriana is a small viallage located high in the hills above San Remo, the primary city of the Italian Rivera. The roads to Ceriana are so steep and the curves so severe that trucks above a certain size cannot navigate them.
Crespi's signature is extra virgin olive oil. The finest Taggiasca, an unfiltered extra virgin olive oil pressed from tiny black Taggiasca olives. These olives are grown on the steep, narrow terraces in the valleys around the town close to the border of France. The oil has a light straw color with a delicate aroma and pleasantly sweet flavor. Because the olives are harvested by hand and have limited availability, this is the most costly oil Crespi produces. Knowing that one oil does not meet every need, Crespi produces other oils in addition to the Taggiasca -- San Remo, Ramoscello and Raccolto -- all of which are exceptional. If the oil is the signature of the Crespi family, then the products made with that oil are love notes. Crespi San Remo Pesto, with its characteristic aroma, is made with only the tiny fragrant leaves at the top of the plant, Parmagiano and Pecorino cheeses and Italian (not Chinese!) pine nuts. It is without comparison. (We're not naming names, but we know wellknown chefs who have claimed Crespi Pesto as their own!) Crespi Pumate, Italian sun dried tomatoes in Crespi extra virgin olive oil is seasoned with a medly of herbs. It is THE sun dried tomato. Other products include Olivada, a black olive spread (not to be confused with tapenade which usually contains anchovies), Oliverde, a green olive paste, Carciofina, an artichoke sauce, and the new Basilic San Remo, a vegetarian pesto basil sauce developed to meet a demand from the French market. Aromatic fresh herbs grow thick and wild on the hills around Ceriana. A different blend of herbs enhances each product. One taste calls for another...and another...and another. Once tasted, the desire for Crespi products becomes insatiable.
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