Vessalico’s Garlic

In Vessalico, a small village in the hinterland of Albenga, an ancient garlic, whose survival is linked to the will of a few farmers, who have handed down the bulbs for generations, together with the cultivation and the packaging technique, is farmed.
The garlic heads are in fact packaged in characteristic long braids, called typically reste: the dried heads, selected according to their size, are braided in pairs, forming a long arabesque pattern, an operation that is only carried out in the evening and in the morning, when the leaves they are wet and do not break. The uncut plants continue to nourish the garlic and keep it healthy and fragrant for months and months after the harvest.
The farming is completely manual and organic and every year, on July 2, on Canavai meadow, in Vessalico, the traditional garlic fair takes place, an ideal opportunity to buy it. Vessalico’s garlic has a delicate aroma, an intense and slightly spicy flavor and, above all, an extreme preservability.