
Months ago, Jim, a reader of Simple Spanish Food, asked us to identify a certain olive (pictured above) that is served in many of the best tapas bars in Madrid.
We knew the olive he was talking about at once. We had enjoyed these olives countless times. They're small, round, bright-green, and shiny. The texture is firm, almost crisp. The flavor is delicate but deep, with hints of oak and herbs. Just thinking about those olives made my mouth water. But unfortunately neither Ana nor I knew what they were called.
While in Madrid for Christmas, Ana did some investigating, and now we know. These fabulous olives are called Campo Real. They come from a denominación de calidad of the same name, about an hour outside of Madrid. Aceitunas camporreal are marinated in thyme, garlic, fennel, and oregano, but the herb flavors are subtle, not overpowering. They are used to bring out the wonderful taste of the olive itself.
At this time of year these olives are called Campo Real nueva--new--because they are from this fall's harvest. That is, they've just completed their brining and marinading. In the bottom right of the picture below (taken at a Madrid olive stand) you can see a big jar of camporreal nueva.

According to the kind bartender at Madrid's wonderful old sherry bar, La Venencia, which serves olives from Campo Real (and only from Campo Real), these olives aren't quite as pretty later in the year, when they are no longer nueva, new. That said, we've had them in May and even October and they looked gorgeous to us.

Unfortunately, aceitunas camporreal are not available in the U.S.--or any place else outside of Spain, so far as I know. Until recently even in Madrid they were sold only in large quantities and served mainly in bars. So these olives are yet another reason to visit Spain.
There's no real substitute for them, but if you're looking for a good Spanish olive in a similar style you might try these manzanilla olives available at La Tienda.