Deerfield Purple Garlic (Hardneck)

Deerfield is a purple stripe hardneck garlic known for its flavor, its coloring, and its bulb consistency. Thin white wrappers carry purple pinstripes, and the tan cloves underneath show purple streaking of their own.

The taste starts mild and warm, then finishes with a spicy zing. Sugar content runs on the higher side, which is why Deerfield is often named one of the better garlics for baking and roasting. Slow heat softens the bite and brings the sweetness forward.

Bulbs are medium to large and uniform, with cloves arranged in a single ring around a central stem, the standard hardneck structure. Expect roughly 7 to 11 cloves per bulb and about 50 to 60 cloves per pound.

In early summer the plants send up scapes, the curling flower stalks that hardneck garlic produces. Scapes have a softer garlic taste than the bulb and are used in cooking as well as in floral arrangements.