Santa Catarina

Tuna Fillets in Olive Oil • 2-PACK

Price: $15.95
Tasting notes

Santa Catarina's fillets are hand-packed in Calheta, São Jorge, using tuna caught one fish at a time by pole and line — the texture stays firm and the flavor stays clean, neither overcooked nor briny. Three ingredients, no shortcuts, and certifications from both Earth Island Institute and Friend of the Sea to back the sustainability claims.

BodyFruitTanninAcidity
Sea SaltLemonOlive OilClean Ocean
  • Style: Skipjack tuna fillets; hand-packed; pole-and-line caught; olive oil and salt; 120g x 2 cans
  • Grapes & Terroir: Skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis); North Atlantic waters off São Jorge, Azores
  • Winemaking: Pole-and-line caught; hand-filleted and hand-packed at Calheta cannery; no automation; no artificial additives
  • Serving: Serve at room temperature or slightly chilled; drain or use the packing oil as a dressing
  • Pairing: Grilled bread, white bean salad, tomato and red onion, simple green salads, pasta
  • Similar To: For fans of Jose Gourmet, Ortiz, and other premium European conservas

Conservas Santa Catarina is based in Calheta, on São Jorge Island in the Azores, approximately 1,062 miles off the Portuguese mainland. Founded in 1995, the cannery works exclusively with skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis) caught using the traditional pole-and-line method — locally called "Salto e Vara" or "jump and rod" — one fish per hook, one fisherman per rod. The factory is the main private employer on São Jorge Island with 139 workers, and every can is hand-packed without automation.

The pole-and-line method is highly selective: it avoids bycatch entirely, targets only mature specimens, and does not disturb dolphins or non-target species. Santa Catarina holds both "Dolphin Safe" certification from the Earth Island Institute and "Friend of the Sea" certification — the first fishing operation in the world to earn both distinctions under this method. The tuna is landed from boats fishing the North Atlantic waters surrounding the Azores and Madeira.

The plain olive oil variety contains three ingredients: skipjack tuna, olive oil, and salt — no artificial additives, colorings, or preservatives. The fillets are light pink, firm yet tender, and carry a clean, mild sea flavor. Each can is 120g. This 2-pack gives you two cans to keep on hand for quick, high-quality meals.

Serve straight from the tin on grilled bread with good olive oil and flaky salt. Works well broken over a simple salad of white beans, tomato, and red onion. The packing oil is clean enough to use as a dressing base.

Wine details

Dry/Sweet:, Dry
Wine Type:,
Wine Style:,
Grapes:,
Farming:, Sustainable
Vintage:,
Alcohol:,
Country:, Portugal
Region:, Azores
Appellation:,
Bottle Size:, 120g x 2
Sugar Level:, Zero Added Sugar

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.


Important Compliance Requirements

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If you'd like to receive a refund for a package that was returned to us after FedEx made three delivery attempts, we can do that but we must keep a $20 refund fee; FedEx charges us a lot of money for returns, unfortunately, I can't stress this enough.


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Heat/Frost damage

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Placed an order. What next?

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2. As soon as your order ships from the warehouse, usually within 2-3 business days, this applies to all shipping rates, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with your tracking information. 2DAY shipping refers to shipping time; we still need 2-3 business days to prepare an order. We need to pick and pack, QA, add printed collateral, and palletize the orders.

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Returns Policy

If you are not satisfied with your purchase, please contact us at (424) 414-2040 or via e-mail at hello@primalwine.com between 9 am and 5 pm Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Sunday, we would like to understand and try to solve your concerns. We can offer refunds only as store credit.

Tuna Fillets in Olive Oil • 2-PACK
$15.95

Producer profile

Santa Catarina

Indústria Conserveira de Santa Catarina was founded in 1995 in Calheta, São Jorge Island, Azores. Despite its relatively recent founding, the cannery draws on São Jorge's longer canning tradition and has grown to become the island's largest private employer, with 139 workers. The operation focuses exclusively on canned tuna — no sardines, mackerel, or other species.

All tuna is caught by pole and line, the traditional Azorean "Salto e Vara" method: one fisherman, one rod, one hook, one fish at a time. Boats locate schools using live bait and surface water sprays to bring tuna up, then fish selectively. This method produces zero bycatch and targets only mature specimens. Santa Catarina holds Dolphin Safe certification from the Earth Island Institute and Friend of the Sea certification — reported to be the first fishing operation to achieve both under this method.

Inside the cannery, every can is hand-packed. Fish are cleaned, filleted, and arranged by hand without automation. The plain olive oil line uses three ingredients: skipjack tuna, olive oil, and salt. The product line also includes flavored varieties using herbs and spices such as basil, rosemary, fennel seeds, and ginger, all made without artificial additives or preservatives. Shelf life is five years from production date; store at room temperature away from moisture.

Wine region

Azores, Portugal

São Jorge is a narrow, elongated volcanic island in the central Azores, sitting at approximately N 38°36' W 28°1' in the North Atlantic. The island is flanked by steep sea cliffs and drops sharply to flat coastal platforms called fajãs, where small communities have historically fished and farmed. The surrounding Atlantic waters are cold, well-oxygenated, and support healthy migratory skipjack tuna populations moving through the region seasonally.

The Azores archipelago has maintained small-scale, pole-and-line tuna fishing for generations, a practice that has kept fish stocks healthier here than in regions dominated by industrial trawling. São Jorge is also known for its DOP cheese, and the cannery at Calheta sits within this same culture of small-scale, quality-focused food production. The island's geographic isolation — roughly 1,062 miles from mainland Portugal — has helped preserve both traditional fishing methods and a close relationship between the cannery and local fishing fleets.

Frequently asked question

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.

Signature on delivery is mandatory for wine deliveries. Please make sure someone is at the shipping address to sign for the package.

If applicable, please consider delivering the package to a business address to ensure someone is available to sign for the package.

We also have the option of delivering the package to a Carrier's store for pickup. Please reach out to us to coordinate.

Carrier will try to delivery a package up to three times before returning the package to us.

See here our shipping policy.

If you miss a delivery and a package gets returned to us we have two options:

1) Reship the package right away: due to the very high cost of shipping and returns, we must charge a re-shipping fee to be determined based on package size and shipping destination.

2) Consolidate the returned package with your next order: this option is free of charge and it's the most popular option.

See here our shipping policy.

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