Noe Valley Olive Oil Tasting Bar: $2 Refills, Closed Mondays

Olive This Olive That sits at 304 Vicksburg St, a few steps south of the 24th Street shopping strip in Noe Valley, and it is closed every Monday. From Tuesday through Friday the door is open 11 am to 6 pm, on Saturday 10 am to 6 pm, and on Sunday 11 am to 5 pm. If you are hunting for an olive oil tasting bar in San Francisco that pours California oil from the current harvest and lets you compare it side by side, this tucked-away corner shop is the one to put on the map first.

The shop opened in 2012, and owner Janell Pekkain built it around buying directly from California growers rather than importing anonymous blends. Shortly after opening, she went through sensory training with the California Olive Oil Council and became a certified taster, the kind of person who sits on judging panels and grades oil by smell and bitterness. She still judges annual competitions and serves on the Applied Sensory taste panel, so the person handing you a cup knows exactly why one oil burns the throat and another tastes of green tomato leaf.

In a 2023 Edible East Bay listing of olive oil retailers, the shop describes itself as a destination retail and tasting room for California extra virgin olive oil, and invites people to come in for a personalized tasting. That framing matters. This is not a gourmet gift store with one sample bottle by the register. The whole counter is set up so you can work through mild, medium and robust oils in order and leave with the one your kitchen actually needs.

Start with the Noe Valley Blend 2025, the house oil named for the neighborhood. It is pressed from Coratina, Frantoio, Maurino and Ascolano olives, harvested and milled in November 2025 by master miller Pablo Voitzuk, and the shop describes it as velvety with artichoke and fresh herb notes and a peppery finish. A 100 mL bottle costs $12, a 250 mL bottle $18 and a 375 mL bottle $25, which makes the smallest size an easy way to take home a souvenir that you will actually finish.

After the blend, line up the single varietals from the same 2025 harvest. Arbequina is the gentle one, the oil the shop itself suggests for baking. Picual and Koroneiki are varieties known for more bitterness and pepper, so taste them last, and slot Taggiasca and Frantoio in between. Tasting them in that order trains your palate faster than any label. Every one of these varietals is priced the same as the blend, so you can buy on flavor alone instead of trying to decode which bottle is the luxury option.

The vinegar side of the room is where most first-time visitors linger. The 12-year traditional barrel-aged balsamic from Modena is the benchmark, while California-made bottles such as Plum Basil, Blackberry Oregano, Ancho Chili and Champagne Mimosa show what a fruit vinegar can do on a salad. The 25-Star traditional balsamic is the top shelf at $27 for 375 mL. Dark Chocolate balsamic is the dessert detour, worth one sip at the counter to see whether it belongs on strawberries or vanilla ice cream at home.

Infused oils follow the same three sizes as the varietals. Meyer Lemon, Persian Lime, Clementine, Basil, Rosemary, Roasted Garlic, Tuscan Herb and Citrus Habanero cover most cooking moods. A useful trick is pairing one infused oil with one vinegar at the counter, for example Meyer Lemon oil with White Premium balsamic for fish, or Blood Orange dark balsamic with Basil oil for tomatoes. Honest verdict: skip the truffle oil here, because the fresh California oils are what this room does better than any supermarket.

The shop runs a straightforward refill program. Return your bottle clean and completely dry and staff will refill it for you with $2 off each bottle, which adds up quickly if the Noe Valley Blend becomes your everyday oil. Rinse with hot water at home first, then let it air dry upside down so no drops of water spoil the next fill. A Kitchen Blend 2025 in a 500 mL bottle at $25 is the value pick for frying and roasting.

For gifts, the 100 mL jute bag sets are the practical buy: a two-bottle set is $28, four bottles $52 and six bottles $76, and you choose the oils and vinegars yourself after tasting. Shelves also carry Rustichella d'Abruzzo pasta, Castelvetrano olives, tapenades and Noe Valley Apiaries honey from the neighborhood. Hold off on the crackers and jarred sauces unless you need them for tonight, since the oils and vinegars are the reason to come all the way to Vicksburg Street.

Beyond walk-in tastings, the shop sells tickets to small seasonal tasting events led by Chef Melanie. General admission is $45. The format is interactive: she cooks three original recipes built around a seasonal oil and vinegar pairing, shares cooking tips and stories about learning to cook with her grandmother, and the group eats what she makes at the end. The menu is vegetarian and non-alcoholic, and everyone leaves with the recipes.

The fall session on the shop calendar is labeled the last one of the year, so if you want a guided experience before the holidays, book it as soon as you know your date. The shop also runs an Olive Oil Club, an annual Tree to Table harvest event and a New Harvest release, and Janell leads private tastings for companies and groups. One reviewer on the shop site recommends a private tasting for team building, describing five oils tasted alongside a full spread of food.

A weekday afternoon is the easiest time to get unhurried attention at the counter, because a personalized tasting takes a while and weekends on 24th Street draw far more shoppers. Saturday is the only day the shop opens at 10 am, which is useful if you want to taste before the farmers market crowd arrives. Arrive on a Monday and you will find the door locked, so plan Noe Valley visits for Tuesday through Sunday only.

If you find the room full during a private event, or you are already downtown, the fallback is Stonehouse California Olive Oil inside the Ferry Building on the Embarcadero. It sells California oils in bottles and in bulk, with refills of several varieties on tap. It is a bigger, busier setting than Vicksburg Street, though, and you lose the sit-down guidance of a certified taster, so treat it as a backup rather than an equal swap.

Make the tasting the middle of a slow afternoon on 24th Street. Walk around the corner to the Noe Valley Town Square at 3861 24th Street, a small public plaza where the neighborhood farmers market sets up on Saturdays, then drift west past the bookstores and cafes toward Castro Street. Noe Valley Bakery at 4073 24th Street is the obvious stop for a loaf of bread to go with whatever bottle you just bought.

From there, the steep streets south of 24th reward a short climb with views back over the Mission and downtown. If you came by transit, the J Church streetcar stops at Church and 24th Street, a short walk east of the shop, and the 48 Quintara bus runs along 24th Street itself. Carry the bottles in a tote rather than loose in a backpack, because nothing ruins a good oil faster than a cracked bottle on a hill.

Olive This Olive That, 304 Vicksburg St, San Francisco, CA 94114. Hours: Monday closed, Tuesday to Friday 11 am to 6 pm, Saturday 10 am to 6 pm, Sunday 11 am to 5 pm. Tasting events with Chef Melanie are $45 general admission and are sold as tickets on the shop website. Bottle refills are $2 off when you bring a clean, dry bottle. Want a nearby dinner to pair with your new oil? Ask Karpo in the Karpo APP for a Noe Valley table that fits your night.