The Istrian producer’s medium-intensity extra virgin olive oil earned another top honor in New York, adding to a decade-long competition record.
Olive Oil Times |
Istria, Croatia — Terra Rossa has been awarded a Gold at the 2026 NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition for the Terra Rossa Bellani brand.
Terra Rossa Bellani is an extra virgin olive oil of medium intensity. Framed by herbaceous aromatics and a clean, persistent peppery sensation, Terra Rossa Bellani shows a fresh, green character that opens into notes suggestive of artichoke and green almond, with a touch of red fruit lending nuance to the finish.
Terra Rossa has produced extra virgin olive oil in Istria for more than three generations, balancing traditional methods with a continual focus on refinement. Based in the heart of Istria, Terra Rossa works amid the peninsula’s rural landscapes and red soils that have become closely associated with the region’s modern push toward quality-driven olive farming.
“We think the foremost quality – there's no success without it – is really loving what you do,” said Stelio Bellani, founder of Terra Rossa.
The 2026 Gold adds to Terra Rossa’s long-running performance at the World Olive Oil Competition, bringing the producer’s overall NYIOOC record to nine Gold Awards and one Silver Award. Terra Rossa previously earned Gold Awards in 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024 and 2025, along with a Silver Award in 2016.
The 2026 recognition also reflects a trajectory Terra Rossa has sustained since its early NYIOOC successes, when members of the Bellani family followed results closely from different corners of Europe while maintaining their work in Istria. In one earlier season, Daniel Bellani told Olive Oil Times he was watching results live online from Zurich while his father and grandfather were asleep back home, sending a message after midnight when he saw the Gold, and later sharing that his 94-year-old grandfather marked the news by putting on a suit and posing for pictures with a bottle of Terra Rossa olive oil.
The NYIOOC Gold places Terra Rossa Bellani among the world’s elite extra virgin olive oils. In the Olive Oil Times World Ranking, Terra Rossa is ranked #9 in Croatia, #55 in the Northern Hemisphere and #57 Worldwide.
The NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition, widely regarded as the world's leading olive oil quality contest, is a trusted reference for consumers and industry professionals.