And, the Upper Hunter’s own Pukara Estate continues to develop on their range of olive oil each year.

When harvest begins, Pukara bottles their first pressed, unfiltered extra virgin olive oil – Novello, Italian for new, or young.

Novello is limited to 1500 bottles, and often pre-ordered prior to harvest by a number of keen connoisseurs.

The grove’s first trees were planted in 1999, and owners Steve and Racquel Goodchild have since been working to create a taste that is unique to the Upper Hunter.

Their Novello collection has been on the shelves every year since 2005.

A regular olive harvest lasts between four to six.

The oil is harvested, pressed, and bottled the next day in clear glass, showing the product in its unsettled and unfiltered state.

The Novello extra virgin olive oil is designed to be consumed immediately, to keep the flavour fresh and fruity.

“The uniqueness of it is that it’s fresh; so it’s days old, not months old,” Mr Goodchild said.

“It has a lot more colour to it and a lot more cloudiness.

“It’s unfiltered and it’s of this year’s harvest.

“Every olive oil press has this in their tanks, but very few actually go about presenting it as a retail product.

“So we do it as a special release so people get the advantage of that freshness and that taste.”

Mr Goodchild said being the busiest time of year, bottling the Novello could be a hassle, but that it was worth it.

“It’s our commitment to flavour and taste," he said.

“It’s so much easier to finish your harvest, make the oil, and get it in the bottle.

“Sure, there’s a commercial factor as well, but it’s driven out of passion.”

“I’m not aware of anyone else that would have this year’s fruit already bottled and out for sale.” Mrs Goodchild added.

“Many don’t have the facilities or the capability of doing that.”

A waiting list for 2018 Novello already started filling up.

As well as their Novello, Pukara also have a range of other flavoured oil products available to suit a variety of tastes.