OUR OLIVE OIL PRESS
Our traditional olive press, built in 1882 in the village of Vrouha, was transported intact to our museum, along with various objects from that period and the factory's handmade wooden door, which we have placed on the wall.
Everything has been reassembled as it was in its original environment. The threshing floor, with its four stones and intricate rotating mechanism, immediately catches the visitor's eye. The loft holds the large hopper, capable of storing five "muzuria" (50kg) of olives. The old ladder, the yoke where the donkey was harnessed to turn the stones, and even the oil lamp that once lit the factory for early-morning production—all remain as they were.
Beside them is the winch that turns the "bozergatis," operating the press itself. Beneath the press is the "dgisviera," where the "mantiles"—cloth sacks filled with olive pulp—were hung. In front of it stands the cask that collected the flowing olive oil.
On the opposite wall, you will find the workspace of "Ladas," the production supervisor, complete with his original table, dish, drinking glass, lamp, and chair.
the REVIVAl
In 2014, after ten years and more than 200,000 visitors, we decided it was time to revive our traditional 19th-century factory.
Throughout the process, we faced many challenges, but discovering how our ancestors produced the "healing olive oil," as described by Hippocrates, made it all worthwhile.
We carefully selected our most natural and organic olives and harvested them young, before full ripeness, to create a special, more nutritious olive oil known as "young oil" (agourida). We ground the olives using our traditional stone mill (without the help of a donkey) and finally pressed them with our 130-year-old press.