Tag: garlic festival

Garlic did more than flavor the food at the 34th annual Garlic Festival over the weekend. It also inspired several handmade crafts on display.

Mild weather and agreeable crowds made the 34th annual Gilroy Garlic Festival a hit among both volunteers and visitors, setting an easygoing and family-friendly atmosphere for 100,240 garlic-loving attendees.

When you’ve been judging garlic-inspired creations for as long as judges Jay Minzer and Evelyn Miliate – who tasted their 100th dish during the Great Garlic Cook-off Saturday – they know the contest sees its years of “lows” and “peaks.”

Initial reaction to the Gilroy’s Garlic Festival’s latest addition was like a teenager’s mood swings: Up, down and changing from one minute to the next.

Garlic Festival President Hugh Davis thrust his fist in the air after he lit the first stove pilot on Gourmet Alley, whipping the crowd into a frenzy of cheers and whistles. Ladles of garlic and calamari lit up in flames on cast iron pans while volunteers danced to pulsing hip-hop beats.

Whether you enjoy your garlic fries with beer, wine, sangria or just a classic Pepsi – there’s a local organization happy to take your drink tickets. The money raised goes to help scholarships and community activities over the next year. Cheers!

When a young, new-to-Gilroy Hugh Davis volunteered to pour beer at the Garlic Festival's beer garden 25 summers ago, he had a blast, and knew right away he’d be hooked for life. To the Garlic Festival, that is.

Friday, July 27, 2012