California Garlic Capital Among Smelliest U.S. Cities

GILROY, CA — You know the minute you arrive here. Garlic is in your future. So much so that if you attend the renowned Garlic Festival in summer, you'd better go with people who partake or perhaps sleep with the bedroom door and windows open.

Hey -- and at this time of year, garlic is more than a characteristic and economic driver for Gilroy. One could say it keeps vampires away.

That's why Expedia writer Chloe Mulliner knew Gilroy was an easy pick when she developed a list based on cities with pride in "quirky aspects, including their favorite smells" -- an ideal addition to her blog series "Travel Sensations" focusing on those two themes.

"As for Gilroy, its unique, garlicky smell makes it stand out, and it's something we wanted to recognize and celebrate," Mulliner said.

Her description of the No. 2 listing reads "the stinking rose's spicy odor permeates Gilroy" from in particular the local Olam Spices & Vegetable factory and Christopher Ranch. This is where garlic is more than a characteristic of the town. It's big business.

Ken Christopher employs 1,000 full time staffers managing 100 million pounds of garlic over 5,700 acres.

"We smell it. We take pride in it like it's completely normal," Christopher told Patch. "We have a saying around here that if you stuck a steak out the window, it would be marinaded (at the end of your drive)."

Garlic is Gilroy's economic cash cow in Santa Clara County's ag land -- and it also pairs like salt and pepper with wine and Italian food. So what's not to like?

Take it from one who lives with it every day. Even though the garlic aroma that envelops the town is no longer detected by Gilroy Visitor Center Executive Director Jane Howard, she knows others pick up on the pungent odor.

"My husband and I moved here in 1980 (from Foster City). We live three miles from Olam, so we're oblivious to the smell. But folks who arrive here say they know they're in Gilroy because they can smell it," Howard said.

It's been a month since Howard put Mulliner's site up declaring her town's distinction. The post has received 10,000 clicks.

Other cities and their smells round out the list as follows:

• Lexington, North Carolina, for barbecue
• Chicago, Illinois, for chocolate
• Washington Island, Wisconsin, for lavender
• Baltimore, Maryland. for fresh baked bread
• Julian, California, for apple pie
• Little Havana in Miami, Florida, for Cuban coffee
• Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for beer
• MacKinac Island, Michigan, for fudge
• Buffalo, New York, for cereal

See for yourself at 10 of the Nation's Smelliest Cities.

Image via Sue Wood, Patch