The Central Coast Olive Oil Competition, hosted annually by the California Mid-State Fair and in partnership with the Lodi Grape Festival, is now accepting entries. The tenth annual competition will take place in April 2018 and will feature over 100 olive oils produced in California.

Olive oils are separated into four categories: extra virgin, flavored extra virgin, organic extra virgin, and flavored organic extra virgin olive oil. The categories are then separated into classes by varietal. The panel of competition judges, who are from all over the state of California, evaluate each entry according to aroma, taste, and intensity, ranging from delicate to robust.

Chief Judge Arden Kremer along with Paul Vossen have put together a group of nine confirmed judges for the annual competition: Brigit Binns, Franco Dunn, Fran Gage, John Hadley, Lawrence Jacobs, Michael Laukert, Nancy Lilly, Julie Menge and Sandy Sonnefelt. Judges are qualified based on their experience in using olive oil in cooking, education and production.

New this year is an early bird registration period until Friday, March 23. Early bird registration is $60 per entry, from Saturday, March 24 to Friday, March 30, registration then increases to $70 per entry. Register today at http://cmsfw.fairmanager.com.

Award winners will be showcased during the 2018 California Mid-State Fair, July 18 – 29, and at the 2018 Lodi Grape Festival, from September 13 – 16.

For more information, http://centralcoastwinecomp.com/olive-oil/