Has the oil started to smoke here?
The smoke point of extra virgin olive oil is about 375F (190C), which is above the boiling point of water. Most likely the pan temperature is close to 350 or so for sauteing in the first recipe, or at least above 300F, so when wine (which is mostly water) hits the pan it starts to boil off, so what you are seeing is water vapor. When stock is added later it's still just water vapor. Once you add liquid the oil will typically sit on the top, which is the coolest place to be because of evaporation. 

A big reason to avoid burning oil is that is creates off flavors which are undesirable, and the smoke itself is unpleasant smelling. For that reason if you want to do high temperature sauteing (think wok) or deep frying you would want to use an oil with a high smoke point, for instance peanut or canola (rapeseed).