5 Things I Learned at the Garlic Festival

On Saturday, Brian and I headed just west of downtown Bennington to attend the 14th Annual Southern Vermont Garlic and Herb Festival.  Dorky as it may sound, I’d been looking forward to it for months.  We had a great time and I definitely learned a lot of things I didn’t know before spending the day sampling delicious Vermont treats (garlic, maple syrup, salsas, dips, breads, sandwiches…it was pretty amazing).

1.  The Garlic Festival is really popular

We drove to Vermont on the morning of the first day of the festival and it was pretty crowded.  Of course, the fact that the majority of the vendors were distributing free samples didn’t help cut down on the crowds.  According to the event’s website, over 6000 people attending the 2008 festival.  That’s a lot of people for a two day event.

2. There are many different kinds of garlic

I know I’m not the only person who didn’t already know this because I was eavesdropping on other people, but it never occured to me before that there are all different types of garlic.  It seems odd to me that supermarkets only seem to carry one kind (and sometimes elephant garlic) if all these local farms are growing so many varieties.

3.  Garlic makes a great decoration

Brian and I opted not to purchase any garlic artwork to decorate our apartment, though I’m sure it would’ve smelled nice.  I just wanted you to be aware that the option is out there.

4.  There exists such a thing as maple liqueur

Along with several Vermont beer and wine vendors,  Sapling Maple Liqueur had a booth with samples available.  We couldn’t think of when another opportunity might arise to sample maple liqueur, so we got some.  Pretty, isn’t it?  Pretty strong is more like it.  We had couple sips and then used the rest to top some vanilla ice cream (though they did have garlic ice cream too!)

5.  There exists such a thing as garlic fudge

I expected that the Garlic Festival would have some bizarre garlic flavored foods and this is definitely my top pick.  Of course, I had to try it.  The sample was pretty microscopic, but it tasted fine to me.  I suppose it helps that cherry can be a pretty strong flavor.