Some things on a farm cannot be rushed. The olive trees at Shire House Farm are a case in point.
Planted by the previous generation of this property, they have been growing quietly on the Bellarine Peninsula for twenty years — through dry summers, coastal winds, and the slow accumulation of seasons that produce a genuinely mature tree. We inherited them. We tended them. And this year, for the first time, we harvested them.
It felt like a significant moment.
Twenty-Year-Old Trees, First Harvest
There is something particular about working with trees that predate you on a piece of land. These olives were not planted to our plan — they were a gift from parents who had a love for nature, and our job has been to honour what was already here.
Olive trees are well suited to the Bellarine Peninsula. They are tolerant of dry conditions, comfortable in well-drained soils, and handle the coastal climate without complaint. Ours have had two decades to establish deep root systems, and it shows in the character of the fruit.
The harvest itself was a hands-on affair — the kind of work that reminds you why you chose this life, even when your arms are reminding you that picking olives is harder than it looks.
Cold Pressed, Locally Milled
Once harvested, we took the olives to a local cold press facility — and spent a good portion of the visit talking all things olive with the owner. That kind of conversation, with someone who genuinely knows their craft, is one of the quiet pleasures of being part of a regional food community.
Cold pressing is the traditional method for producing high-quality extra virgin olive oil. The olives are pressed without heat, which preserves the natural flavour compounds, antioxidants, and the grassy, peppery character that distinguishes a genuinely good oil from a generic one. For a small batch like ours — grown organically, on a specific piece of Bellarine ground — it was the only method that made sense.
Small Batch, Organic, Extra Virgin
Our olive oil will be available as a limited edition, 250ml bottle — small batch by necessity, and all the better for it.
It is organic, cold pressed, and extra virgin, produced from trees that have spent twenty years in this particular soil. That is not marketing language — it is simply what it is.
The oil is currently resting, as all good olive oil should after pressing. We will announce when it is ready.
Pre-Order or Register Your Interest
This will be a genuinely limited release. If you would like to secure a bottle of our first-ever Shire House Farm extra virgin olive oil, get in touch at info@shirehousefarm.com.au or keep an eye on shirehousefarm.com.au for when it goes live in the shop.
We'll also be announcing via our email list — subscribe here if you'd like to be first to know.