Grove Chat - Margot Fry at Wainui-o-Mata Olives

by Margot Fry, Olive Oil Maker of Wainui-o-Mata Olives 

September 2026

We are a small olive oil producer based in the Wainuiomata Valley near Wellington. In fact we'e probably the closest grove to the city as the tug flies!

Our philosophy is simple: produce the highest quality extra virgin olive oil that we can. We harvest ourselves, we have our olives pressed within 24 hours and we blend our oils to get the flavour profiles we want. 

Our 2026 harvest finished in June, producing relatively low quantities of fruit but, we think, very good tasting oil. We have now decided which varietals we are using in our Mellow and Classic blends, our oils have been certified as Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and sales are underway. 

Spring is tentatively here and it is a busy time of year for us. We are now focused on grove maintenance. A big focus of our pruning has been helping our somewhat wind-blown trees keep a vase shape, even if the shape is somewhat off centre. 

Our Frantoio and Koroneiki olive trees are well into bud development and branches are covered in tiny buds (the other varieties are a bit slower out of the blocks). We are spraying the trees with foliar fertiliser - soils in the lower part of the North Island are generally deficient in Boron and if we don’t add trace amounts of Boron, the olive fruits don’t set properly. 

Our local environment does influence how our oils taste, particularly our somewhat variable climate. Another key influence on taste is how ripe the olives are when we harvest them. Greener olives are higher in polyphenols and produce stronger tasting oil, but have relatively lower oil content. As olives ripen, the polyphenol levels reduce, taste mellows and oil content increases. When we harvest, we tend to prioritise taste over volume.

We harvest each variety individually and then blend the oils to produce the combination that will give us the flavour profile we want - something mild for our customers who like an olive oil that is on the fruity/mellow end of the flavour spectrum, and something with more bite for those who like a stronger taste. 

Some seasons, however, a single varietal gives us exactly the taste we want so we don’t need to blend. This year, our Mellow oil is 100% Koroneiki - a small Greek olive beloved by the finches and other small birds who live in our shelter belt trees. It is a mild oil with banana notes and slight pepperiness. 

Likewise, this year’s Classic oil is 100% Picual. This is a classic Spanish variety with bright alfalfa notes and strong pepperiness.