“We were all born in an olive grove.”

About us: Melissakis Family

We are the Melissakis family, fourth-generation olive oil producers and family-owned olive millers from Crete. For more than 130 years, we have lived the full olive oil cycle. We are farmers in the groves, millers at the press, and stewards of a tradition that ties us to our land and community.

Our story begins in the 1890s, in the traditional village of Tsivaras, Apokoronas, eastern Chania. Since then, we have cultivated olive trees and produced extra virgin olive oil using time-honored methods passed down through generations.

What began as a small cold-pressing mill with stone wheels and wooden presses has grown into a modern, PDO-certified olive oil facility. However, our philosophy has never changed:
Olive oil should be honest, pure, and deeply connected to the land.

Our Roots in Apokoronas, Crete

Our first mill operated in the heart of Tsivaras, a region long known for its exceptional olive groves and ideal climate. In 1961, we officially founded our family company. From then on, we continued to invest in better technology while preserving the craft of cold-pressing.

By the late 1980s, we had upgraded to a modern extraction plant to meet growing demand. Importantly, we never compromised on quality.

In 2008, we expanded into a new facility on the outskirts of the village. That same year, we added our first small-batch bottling line. As a result, we could oversee the entire journey from harvest to bottle.

In 2017, we upgraded both the olive mill and bottling systems once again. Today, we maintain a bottling capacity of 6,000–8,000 liters per day. In addition, we can store up to 500,000 liters of freshly pressed olive oil.

What Makes Our Olive Oil Special?

• PDO Apokoronas Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  Recognized by the EU as a Protected Designation of Origin product, our olive oil is made exclusively from olives grown in Apokoronas. This region is celebrated for its fruity, balanced, and low-acidity oils.

• Cold-Extracted & Freshly Bottled
  Our Cretan olive oil is harvested at the right moment. Then, it is processed within hours of picking and stored in temperature-controlled tanks. Therefore, it preserves its natural polyphenols and aroma.

• Family-Owned & Operated
  Every step — from grove to glass bottle — is managed by someone whose name is still Melissakis.

• Transparent, Sustainable, Authentic
  We work with nature, not against it. Our methods combine traditional Cretan farming, modern hygiene standards, and a deep respect for quality over quantity.

Visit Us — Olive Oil Tours in Crete

If you visit Crete between October and January, you are invited to watch the entire cold-extraction process in action. You will also see, smell, and taste the difference of authentic Greek olive oil.

Outside harvest season, we continue to offer guided tours of our mill and olive groves. Guests can taste our latest harvests, learn how real extra virgin olive oil is made, and explore the land that shapes its flavor.

Walk-ins are welcome. Even better, you can join the Green Drops Tours and discover olive oil from another perspective.

EU Shipping & Online Orders

You can buy our authentic Greek olive oil online. We ship EU-wide directly from Crete. Whether you are a home cook, chef, or curious traveler, we invite you to taste a bottle of our extra virgin olive oil — Crete’s most essential ingredient.

Taste the Legacy

We are not a global brand. We are a family and we make olive oil the way we always have — slowly, carefully, and with our hands in the soil.

If you are looking for authentic Cretan extra virgin olive oil, pressed with care, tradition, and heritage, you are in the right place.