I never eat raw garlic. I only use them in cooking and saute. ONCE IN A GREAT WHILE I BAKE SOME.
With just about any saute and pan fry I use some garlic. Honestly, I have not yet developed a trained palate to make distinction between them.

When it comes to heat, one can argue the other way around: WHY BOTHER WITH HOTTER ONES, JUST USE MORE OF THE MILDER ONES.

I have grown various store bought varieties in the past which turned out to be some artichokes and Asian. in terms of size, they were almost comparable. My understanding is that the ones sold in store must be ok. otherwise they would not grow them. Maybe next year I'll try something that is really special.

I agree that the differences among garlic tastes are subtle, with heat differences dominating the comparisons. I've tried raw garlic taste tests and found my results to be very inconsistent since my poor tongue is burned senseless after the first few bites. It took me years to develop a discriminating palate for red wines, and I don't see why I would do the same with raw garlic when I only use it in cooking.

I just planted 180 cloves total yesterday of German Red, Estonian Red, and Russian Red here is southwestern VA, and today I'll plant another 180 cloves of Music. After trying dozens of varieties I am settling in to those that produce consistently large bulbs with 4-6 fat cloves. My emphasis is on yield (size), ease of use (peeling and clove size) and storage capability, rather than taste. Most of what I grow are chopped and frozen in thin flat ziplock freezer bags, and the rest is eaten fresh, roasted and frozen, dried and powered, and this year I'll try frozen in EV olive oil in ice cube trays.

You may want to give Music a try. Not sure how well it would do in SoCal, but it is very popular in the Northeast where is makes 2.5"+ bulbs with just 4-7 fat cloves. Plus as a hardneck it also delivers a crop on delicious scapes in June.

TomNJ/VA

Thanks for the replies! We like raw fresh garlic in olive oil, sometimes with cracked black pepper added, as a dipping sauce for crusty bread. You have to really love garlic to do this, and we do. :)

"WHY BOTHER WITH HOTTER ONES, JUST USE MORE OF THE MILDER ONES."
No matter how many bell peppers you add to salsa, it will never get as spicy as if you added a few jalapenos instead. Same deal with garlic.

My mind is still open to the possibility that these garlics have redeeming qualities that I have yet to consider. Earliness, ease of peeling, hardiness, etc, are all worthy characteristics. Taste is a pretty big factor though for something that I intend to eat. :)

Don't forget length of storage. Those that will still be good come spring are a special bunch.

Shilla was indeed the mildest garlic in the taste test, and it is also the first to sprout so far. It might be a good choice for someone who wants a mild and early hardneck turban.

The in-ground portion of my garlic trials are pretty much over now for this season. Glad to see that many of the bulbs lasted in the ground right up to June. The California garlic is going to be tough to beat as it reliably formed nice sized bulbs.

Now we'll see how well they do in the eating and storing phase.

Hello mrclint, as a fellow raw garlic lover, have you tried it finely chopped in a soya, chili and sesame oil as a dipping sauce for chinese dumplings, in sour cream/yoghurt dips to eat with crackers or potato crisps, finely chopped and mixed with extra virgin olive oil, sun ripened tomatoes, capers and shallots on crusty ciabatta - there are definitely varieties of garlic that are so hot you'd swear that chili had been added but sometimes a lovely sweet mild garlic is what you feel like. We don't have the wealth of varieties that are available in the US and am most envious of your choice:)

How hot the garlic tastes seems to depend upon its age. They seem to lose their bite as they get farther along.

I found that Sicilian Gold and German Extra Hardy are the best keepers I grow. Eating scapes from this year's crop and still using their predecessors.

I have a garlic garden of 350 bulbs. I have noticed (and removed) 6 bulbs that were much smaller than the rest, had more brown leaves than the rest of the crop and seemed flimsy. Upon pulling them, I discovered that they came out easily, were small bulbs, and seemed to have a bit of rot. I live in New England (zone 5) and I think I am 2 weeks from harvest time. Also, I pulled one of the healthy looking plants, and it was perfect looking. My questions are: can anyone help me identify the rot? And, is the rest of my crop doomed? I read a bit, and it seems that some rot can continue to develop post harvest

I have a garlic garden of 350 bulbs. I have noticed (and removed) 6 bulbs that were much smaller than the rest, had more brown leaves than the rest of the crop and seemed flimsy. Upon pulling them, I discovered that they came out easily, were small bulbs, and seemed to have a bit of rot. I live in New England (zone 5) and I think I am 2 weeks from harvest time. Also, I pulled one of the healthy looking plants, and it was perfect looking. My questions are: can anyone help me identify the rot? And, is the rest of my crop doomed? I read a bit, and it seems that some rot can continue to develop post harvest

Clint, where do you buy your garlic and which do better in SoCal? i'm in Texas and look to plant varieties that will do well in our warm winters.