Orto Fortunato

Aglione della Valdichiana

Applying ancient manufacturing techniques, while keeping up with the times: that’s the philosophy of Orto Fortunato, a family business located in Cortona, the cradle of Aglione garlic.

Aglione della Valdichiana is a unique product that is not very well known. As the name itself suggests, it is a way bigger garlic than what we are used to. But its size is not the only thing that is so special about it.

This huge garlic variety, which comes from the valley bearing the same name, was never mass-produced; Orto Fortunato managed to recover it, preventing its extinction. Aglione is a staple food in this valley and all over Tuscany, which has at times replaced common garlic; this variety has been part of the culinary culture of the Tuscan hinterland since the Etruscan age.

From the Etruscan era, through the Roman age, to today: this garlic is still very much beloved by families from Valdichiana and Val D'Orcia, and managed to survive to the present day thanks to the work of farms, such as Orto Fortunato.

Orto Fortunato also made an incredible Aglione garlic sauce for whomever doesn’t feel like cooking with whole garlic cloves; this sauce is ready to serve and pairs exceptionally well with fresh Pici noodles. As a matter of fact, Aglione garlic is ideal as a mirepoix for tomato sauce. The most important thing is not to burn it. Aglione must be thinly sliced and left to simmer at a low temperature, so that it can release its delicious flavour.