An oil mill is a place where oil is produced. The word of Arabic origin refers specifically to the mill used to grind seeds or other products from which oils can be extracted, and in this case they were olives.
In Montanejos, at the beginning of the 20th century, four oil mills worked at full capacity for two months of the year during the harvest. What remains from this olive oil tradition in Montanejos is the memory of the San José Oil Mill, founded on October 27, 1930, with 90 people affiliated with the San José Agricultural Union, still remains.
This space, which was once used to press the olives of local farmers and produce the much-coveted liquid gold, today holds the memory and remembrance of those men and women who worked in the fields with olives.
It now functions as an ethnographic museum. During a visit, you can learn about all the phases and processes of the original production of oil, from harvesting the tree, through grinding, pressing and decanting, to storage. In the room that once served as a warehouse, you can now enjoy an audiovisual presentation that tells the oral stories of daily life in the olive fields and the subsequent work of producing the oils.
The Almazara de San José also houses a space dedicated to the study and narration of the people and culture of the place, as well as its social customs: it is el Museo Etnográfico de Montanejos (the Ethnographic Museum of Montanejos). Schools and organized groups can request visits.