When the first oil of the season arrives, a bottle can seem to hold the freshly picked grove: grass, leaf, tomato, almond or green fruit released on opening. “New harvest” means that the oil comes from the latest crop year; it is not a legal category and does not guarantee excellence by itself. A rewarding bottle should be extra virgin olive oil, made from sound fruit and handled carefully. It is also useful to distinguish new harvest from “early harvest”. The latter refers to olives picked green or during veraison, before full ripeness. Many new oils are early harvested, but the sensible buyer checks crop year, producer, variety and category rather than relying on an attractive phrase.