Porcelain garlics are one of the most popular gourmet garlics and are also some of the prettiest as far as physical appearance.
They are generally very robust as far as flavor and include some of the hotter and spicier varieties available. They are one of the longer-storing garlics and are very high in allicin — the primary ingredient in garlic that has been linked to numerous health benefits.

Porcelains tend to be very large and only have around 4-6 cloves per bulb. They tend to mature later in the season than other varieties except for Silverskins.
Like Rocamboles, they fare best in colder climates and are the garlic of choice to grow in many northern U.S. states and Canada.

Popular Porcelain types of garlic include Majestic, Music, Susan Delafield, Georgian Crystal, and Romanian Red.

Marbled Purple Stripes tend to have darker colors than standard ones and usually fewer cloves and a hotter taste.

Creme de la Rasa from Rasa Farms is a Marbled Purple Stripe (Allium Sativum Ophioscorodon)

It is in Marble Purple Stripe garlic family. Hardneck garlic.
The beautiful garlic with very dark purple striped wrappers. Intense, strong, pleasant heat with garlic flavor. Beautiful garlic developed in British Colombia, Canada.
Large bulbs; 6 cloves per bulb.
Storing time; 8 months from harvest.
This is one of the best tasting and beautiful looking garlic.

Personality profile: Just two years to a large bulb from bulbil, these beauties are a must if you’re looking for size in a Marbled Purple Stripe. Like Red Russian, their Purple kin have consistent clove count and character, but may even taste a little better (don’t tell the Reds that!)
Cloves: Averages 5 large cloves that are fairly consistent in size. The bulb pops easily and there are very few double cloves, which is a great boon to commercial growers.

Bulbils: 40-60 medium sized bulbils per umbel (and another 30-60 smaller ones) which grow into large rounds the 1st year and good sized, fully cloved bulbs the 2nd year. 3 years to full maturity.

Growing: Tolerates a wide range of soil moisture and growing conditions. Medium to broad leaves and scapes that do a playful dance rather than curling tightly. Scape removal before stiffening does help to increase bulb size.

Harvest: Mid-season harvest. Let those bulbs reach their maximum size by waiting until a good 50% of the leaves are brown. The wrappers on Marbled Purple Stripes (which are an extension of the leaves above) are so thick and strong that you don’t need as many to be intact at harvest.

Storage: Good mid to long-term storing garlic. If you plan to use as seed garlic, we recommend gently tearing the wrapper around the stem to allow air down in to the cloves, otherwise the thick wrappers can hold moisture and promote mold. Expect 6-8 months if stored properly.

Pedigree: Creme de la Rasa was originally a Rocambole which mutated into a Marbled Purple Stripe in their own fields. It has all the amazing taste of a Rocambole but the growing characteristics of a Marbled Purple Stripe thus uniting the best from the culinary and farming worlds.

Artichoke: Artichoke garlics are softneck garlics that get their name from the way their cloves are arranged, as they have several overlapping layers of cloves that looks like an artichoke.

Artichoke garlics thrive in a wide range of climates and tend to be large, long-storing garlics. The fact that they’re a softneck garlic means that they can be braided, with artichoke garlics commonly sold in grocery stores as well as at farmer’s markets.

The vast majority of garlic sold at grocery stores and retail locations in the U.S. are artichoke garlic, much of it grown in California and imported from China and other countries.

Popular Artichoke garlics include Italian Late, Kettle River Giant, Inchelium Red, Red Toch, Polish White, and Thermadrone.

Silverskin: Silverskin garlics are typically the last to mature each season and are softnecks similar to artichokes and can be braided.
Silverskins are some of the best-storing garlics, which coupled with their late maturation means they may be your best bet when growing garlic to have available year-round as silverskin bulbs can often last and stay good well into the next spring after harvest.
Popular Silverskin garlics include Baja Morado, Nootka Rose, Rose du Var, and Mount St. Helens.

Garlic has been cultivated for thousands of years but there’s surprisingly little scientific research into many varieties so classification is often a matter of guesstimation and convenience as opposed to a matter of hard science.

Only DNA analysis can prove if a variety is actually unique; some garlic has been passed from grower to grower and later renamed, so some “varieties” and types of garlic with unique names are quite likely actually genetically identical.

The converse is also true, as DNA analysis has turned conventional wisdom on its head in some cases, such as the discovery that Asiatics and Turbans are genetically different from Artichoke garlics — and that asiatic and turban garlics are genetically different from one another as well.

Creole garlics share many traits with Asiatics and Turbans and are some of the prettier garlics as far as appearance and striking colors.

Creole garlics typically have 8-12 cloves per bulb and are one of the better-suited garlics for growing in warmer U.S. states, as many other garlics struggle in areas with warmer winters and early, hot summers.

They’re very tolerant of droughts and tough growing conditions – although they do tend to be on the small size as far as bulbs.

These garlics originated in Spain and came to North America via Spanish conquistadors making their way through the Caribbean — thus the Creole name.
Since many Creole varieties grow well in southern U.S. states, the assumption is often that they get their name from being grown in Louisiana but that’s not the case at all.
They store very well — similar to Artichokes and Silverskins — and the bold visual appearance of many Creole types of garlic make them great sellers in farmers markets.

Popular Creole garlic varieties include Creole Red, Ajo Rojo, Burgundy, Pescadero Red, and Rose de Lautrec.