Fête de l'Ail Rose de Lautrec

The unmissable event of the Tarn region

Every first Friday and Saturday of August, the medieval village of Lautrec, classified among the Most Beautiful Villages of France, comes alive to the rhythm of the Pink Garlic Festival, one of the largest gastronomic festivals in the south of France. Since 1971, this celebration marks the beginning of the marketing season for pink garlic, an exceptional product cultivated in the Tarn's Pays de Cocagne and recognized by an IGP and a Label Rouge.

An exceptional gastronomic heritage

Lautrec pink garlic is distinguished by its characteristic pink hue, its sweet and subtle flavor, and its remarkable preservation. Cultivated on the clay-limestone soils of the Pays de Cocagne, it benefits from expertise passed down from generation to generation by Tarn producers. The festival is an opportunity to discover this product in all its forms: in traditional braids (called "manouilles"), in soup, in tarts, in confits, and in countless culinary preparations.

A rich and festive program

Over two days, the Pink Garlic Festival offers a dense and varied program:

• The big market: direct sales of pink garlic by producers, artisans, and local Tarn producers
• Garlic soup: free tasting of the traditional pink garlic soup, served to thousands of visitors
• The 'manouilles' competition: competition for the longest garlic braid, with a record attempt each year (24.50m in 2025), profits donated to an association
• Culinary competitions: competition for the best pink garlic tart and artistic compositions
• Entertainment: concerts, brass bands, costumed parades, traditional music, children's entertainment

More than fifty years of tradition

Created in the 1970s, the festival's original purpose was to celebrate the start of the pink garlic sales season after it had been dried in traditional drying sheds. Over the decades, the event has continued to grow, expanding from one day to two days in 2014. The giant 'manouille' project, launched in 1998 by the Jeunes Agriculteurs, has become a highlight of each edition, with successive records benefiting charitable causes. With more than 25,000 visitors each year, the Pink Garlic Festival is today one of the most popular events in the Tarn department.