A l'Olivier, Oils and Fruit Vinegars from Paris and Provence
A l'Olivier is a traditional Parisian house for oils and fruit vinegars, founded in 1822 by the pharmacist Eugène Popelin in the Marais district. The small oil shop grew into a family business with its own mills in Provence and near Poitiers, known for flavored oils and thick fruit vinegars made with real fruit pulp.
A l'Olivier has stood for French oil and vinegar artistry from Paris for over 200 years. Its history began in the 4th arrondissement in 1822; today, the Bailly/A l'Olivier group operates three specialized locations with around 60 employees. Here, you will find the house's fruity vinegar preparations, above all the popular raspberry vinegar, the dark fig vinegar, and the exotic mango vinegar, each with a high fruit pulp content.
1822, a pharmacist and green gold
A l'Olivier was founded in 1822 by the pharmacist Eugène Popelin, in the heart of the fashionable Parisian Marais in the 4th arrondissement. What began as a shop for fine olive oil is now one of the oldest gourmet houses in France.
On his travels to Provence, Popelin discovered olive oil—the green gold of the south. He was not only captivated by its taste but, being a pharmacist, also studied the nutritional properties of this elixir. In an age when oil belonged in the pharmacy rather than the kitchen, this was a bold idea, and his maison quickly became a meeting place for gourmets and lovers of the Mediterranean lifestyle.
Anyone who enters the old boutique on the Rue de Rivoli can still sense something of that founding era—the dark wood and the scent of oil and herbs. It is rare for a company to survive two centuries, but A l'Olivier has outlasted empires, republics, and two world wars without losing its core.
In 1978, the house joined forces with the Parisian oil-trading family led by Jean-Claude Blanvillain, who owned the Huilerie Bailly, continuing the work just as Popelin had started it: with a passion for craftsmanship. Since the mid-nineties, the company has also owned its own olive trees in the region around Nice.
Three fruit vinegars with plenty of pulp
We carry three fruit vinegars from A l'Olivier, each a thick vinegar preparation made with about 40 percent fruit pulp based on spirit vinegar.
This distinguishes them from clear wine vinegar. While wine vinegar primarily provides acidity, the vinegars from A l'Olivier add a thick layer of fruit. Sweetness and acidity are balanced, creamy rather than sharp, and a single spoonful is enough where you would need more of a thin vinegar. This way, you taste the fruit, not just the bite.
The bright red raspberry vinegar is the classic and bestseller; tart and sweet, it is at home in French cuisine, where it has long been used in Nouvelle Cuisine for meat and salads. The dark fig vinegar offers the velvety sweetness of ripe figs, wonderful with foie gras and goat cheese. And the golden-yellow mango vinegar is the most exotic of the three, tropically sweet and excellent with fish and in Asian cuisine.
All three are not vinegars fermented from fruit, but rather spirit vinegar, refined with real fruit pulp instead of mere flavorings and gently thickened with a little sugar and pectin. The French call them vinaigre à la pulpe, vinegar with fruit pulp. Shake before use, as the pulp settles. They are among our creamiest fruit vinegars.
Three mills and a patented process
A l'Olivier operates out of three specialized locations, each focused on its own craft. What began in Paris is now spread across half of France.
The classic and flavored oils are produced in their own mill in Provence. For this, the house has patented a process called enfleurage, in which fresh plants release all their aromas into the oil—gently and without heat. This is how the basil oil with fresh basil, oil with lavender, oregano, or lemon thyme, and a fine white truffle oil are created; each is an olive oil with a single, clear aroma. Fresh herbs and spices set the tone, with no artificial additives.
The fruit vinegars also come from the Provençal workshops, where the fruit is selected, the pulp prepared, and the bottles filled. In Poitiers in western France, a second mill cold-presses nut and seed oils by hand, including the sesame oil that pairs so well with the mango vinegar. These oils provide salads and desserts with a fine, toasted depth.
North of Paris, the old Huilerie Bailly manages the logistics center and bottles oils and vinegars for the Parisian gastronomy sector. Around 60 people now work together in the internationally active Bailly/A l'Olivier group, and tradition and curiosity remain inseparable here.
Two silver medals and shops as far as London
The quality of A l'Olivier found recognition early on—and on a grand stage.
At the Paris World's Fairs of 1867 and 1889, the olive oil was awarded two silver medals, high honors for a food product at the time. Its reputation spread far; today, the house has shops in cities like Nice, Cannes, Stockholm, and London, and the flagship store in Paris still sells oils and vinegars over the counter.
The house is still managed as a family business, proudly guarding its three mills and its name. The green gold with which it all began remains the heart of the house to this day, and anyone who takes oil and vinegar seriously for so long collects stories like medals.
Over 200 years after its founding, the name stands for the same care that Popelin once brought to the business, from green gold to fruity vinegar. Hats off.
Start with the raspberry vinegar
If you would like to start with A l'Olivier, choose the raspberry vinegar, the best-selling of the three.
It is particularly lovely in a vinaigrette over lamb's lettuce with walnuts, while the fig vinegar makes a grand appearance with a piece of goat cheese and a glass of Crémant. We love the mango vinegar with grilled fish and in a summery aperitivo—a splash in sparkling wine is enough. Over ripe strawberries with a little sugar, it turns simple fruit into a small dessert.
In summer, the three season colorful salads and fruit; in winter, a braised red cabbage dish. They also go well over a mild fresh goat cheese or a scoop of sorbet, sweet and tart at the same time. And if you are looking for a gift, put them together as a fruity trio—a lovely souvenir for gourmets that also looks great in a gift basket alongside oil, mustard, and good bread.
If you are then bitten by the urge for oil, browse through our olive oils from southern Europe, from mild to robust. Taste your way through Provence.
