Papaglionti garlic: Calabrian excellence waiting to be discovered

Small, pink, fragrant, aromatic and healthy. There is a type of garlic in Calabria that is truly exceptional for its characteristics and numerous properties. It grows in Papaglionti, a tiny hamlet located in the municipality of Zungri, in the province of Vibo Valentia, known for its rock village.

Didn't you know? Then you must come and discover this little gem of goodness with a thousand benefits and learn about the unique and evocative territory where it is produced.

This is thanks to the temperate, dry climate, but also to the composition of the soil. The fact is that Papaglionti grows garlic plants with a unique aroma and flavour. It is also distinctive in colour and shape: small and pink, with a spicy and very aromatic taste. In the surroundings of Zungri, the cultivated fields give off its persistent scent. When the bulbs reach maturity - between spring and summer - they are harvested and exposed to the sun. After the drying process, you can find them for sale in long, thin braids.

You can tell immediately that this is no ordinary garlic: Papaglionti garlic has small pink-streaked cloves with an intense aroma that is released when peeled. Aromatic and spicy, pungent but sweet at the same time, it gives dishes a unique flavour and enhances every meal. But it is not only its taste that sets it apart; these bulbs are a concentrate of well-being. Papaglionti garlic is tasty, easy to digest and contains more antioxidants than common garlic. It is a powerful natural antibiotic and, thanks to the allicin it contains, supports the cardiovascular system and has strong antibacterial properties. In practice, it helps to keep you healthy almost like a medicine, which is an excellent reason to consider stocking up on it. The cultivation of pink garlic in Papaglionti has a centuries-old history and is emblematic of a Calabria that protects its traditions and values its unique characteristics.

Discovering Papaglionti garlic means discovering a territory that will reveal itself in all its beauty and uniqueness. Zungri is known as the 'City of Stone' and has been renamed by others as 'the little Petra of the south'. The reason is obvious: this village on Mount Poro is known for a large rock settlement that covers three thousand square metres. The Caves of Zungri are ancient dwellings carved into the rock, occupied from the 8th to the 15th century. The rock walls, carved into different areas, with rooms used for various purposes, constitute the settlement of an ancient community known as the Sbariàti. The dwellings carved into the rock were used both as homes and for sheltering domestic animals, producing wine and lime, and storing grain.

In the Museum of Rock and Peasant Civilisation, you can admire a rich collection of objects and customs from the 19th and 20th centuries: agricultural tools, ancient production machinery, weaving and forging tools, clothing and domestic furnishings. It is worth visiting the village of Zungri, losing yourself in its narrow streets, admiring the magnificent Shrine of Santa Maria delle Neve, which houses an ancient Renaissance painting from Raphael's workshop, and finally marvelling at the characteristic and colourful painted doors. An excursion to Mount Poro will finally be an opportunity to taste another gastronomic excellence of the area, the famous Pecorino PDO cheese.