Wajos Basil Olive Oil. 99 percent extra virgin olive oil from Spain with basil – the seasoning oil for tomatoes, pizza, and pasta that tastes like summer all year round.

Wajos Basil Olive Oil is an olive oil preparation made from 99 percent extra virgin olive oil from Spain with natural basil aroma, 250 ml from Dohr on the Moselle. Not a pesto, not a frying oil, not an herb oil with leaves in the bottle – but a clear seasoning oil for drizzling that tastes of fresh basil. Vegan.

Basil Olive Oil by Wajos solves a problem familiar to anyone with a basil plant on their windowsill: the pot is lush in July, dead in November, and the leaves from the pack turn black after two days. This oil tastes the same every day of the year – like green, peppery basil over tomatoes, mozzarella, and pasta. For us, it is the second most popular seasoning oil after lemon, and it is listed as a bestseller in the kitchen at Wajos itself. Pesto and fresh basil pots remain what they are – this oil fills the gap for the moments when you have neither.

Green and peppery like fresh basil, with mild olive oil underneath

As soon as you open the bottle, the oil smells like crushed basil leaves – green, slightly peppery, and a little sweet. On the palate, you first taste the herb, then the olive oil: an extra virgin olive oil from Spain, mild and rounded, free from the bitterness and sharpness found in the finish of some Tuscan oils. This is intentional, as a strong oil would overpower the basil. This way, the herb stays at the forefront and the oil remains in the background.

Honestly: there are no leaves in the bottle. The flavor comes from natural basil aroma and another natural aroma, dissolved in 99 percent olive oil. This has an advantage – the oil remains clear, free from plant particles that could turn rancid, and tastes as good in the last week as it did in the first. And it has its limits: anyone expecting the bitter compounds and green color of basil crushed in a mortar will not find it here. For those who want an oil with visible herb pieces or a pure, unflavored olive oil, this seasoning oil is not suitable – in that case, the EVOO Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Wajos is the right bottle.

Over tomatoes, on pizza, in pasta – always at the very end

The classic is Caprese: tomatoes, mozzarella, salt, pepper, and instead of three wilted leaves from a pack, a tablespoon of this oil. The same applies to bruschetta with diced tomatoes and garlic, toasted white bread, or a bowl of olives and antipasti. On pizza, it goes on after baking instead of before – a spoonful over a hot Margherita, and the scent of basil rises, whereas every leaf would have burned in the oven.

In pasta, it replaces a quick pesto: drain the spaghetti, add two tablespoons of oil, grated Parmesan, salt, pepper, cherry tomatoes – ready in ten minutes, and the kids will eat it. With zucchini, eggplant, or grilled vegetables, it works as a marinade after grilling: vegetables hot off the grate, oil drizzled over, let it soak in for half an hour. In salad dressings, it belongs with anything containing tomato, cucumber, or mozzarella, and with potato salad with arugula.

It is not well-suited for frying. Over high heat, the basil notes evaporate, leaving only ordinary olive oil – a waste. It also gets lost in soups and braised dishes; there, only add a spoonful to the plate when serving. And it pairs less well with sweets or fish with butter-lemon than the lemon oil does. One to two tablespoons is a portion, and the bottle lasts about a month with daily use.

Our tip: Three tablespoons of Basil Olive Oil, two tablespoons of Fig-Date Crema, salt – the dressing for leaf salad with tomatoes that we recommend most often for this oil.

A seasoning oil from Dohr, where almost everything is made in-house

Wajos manufactures most of its approximately 900 items in-house in Dohr near Cochem on the Moselle, including the seasoning oils. The olive oil comes from Spain, while preparation and bottling take place on the Moselle, and every batch is tested in their own lab. The name stands for the initials of Walter Josef Oster, the winemaker from Ediger-Eller whose family has been making wine for 15 generations. He started with liqueur in the 1980s; his son Peter Oster and Ulf Schwichtenberg built it into a brand with over 80 employees and their own stores throughout Germany starting in the 2000s.

The family business's motto is "controlled small-scale work": better an oil bottled in your own facility than one produced somewhere on commission. For a seasoning oil, this means: the same base as the house EVOO, the same lab, and an aroma balanced to complement rather than overwhelm the olive oil. Anyone coming from viticulture knows how much a tenth of a percent matters.

The oil for tomato season and for people who can't keep a basil plant alive

Basil Olive Oil is the oil we recommend when someone enjoys cooking Mediterranean dishes but dislikes buying and throwing away herbs. It sits on our shelves next to Lemon Olive Oil for fish and salad and Garlic Olive Oil for bread and frying – the three of them cover most evenings. All seasoning oils can be found on our Wajos page.

As a gift, the bottle suits people who love Italy and like to be finished in the kitchen quickly, preferably along with breadsticks or a pasta sauce. Store in a dry, cool, and dark place; the refrigerator is off-limits – olive oil will flocculate there. The oil is not suitable for those looking for a cold-pressed herb oil with real leaves or an oil for high-heat searing.

Basil and mild olive oil from Spain, bottled on the Moselle – the seasoning oil that makes tomatoes taste like August all year round.