Mr. Christopher and his friends thought they would draw a few thousand people to the festival; instead more than 15,000 showed up. Within a few years, it attracted more than 100,000 visitors, eating garlic bread and drinking garlic wine made with crops donated by Christopher Ranch. They watched Iron Chef contestants and Food Network stars cook garlic dishes and pose for photos with Herbie, the festival’s mascot.
The success of the festival, which earned Gilroy the nickname Garlic Capital of the World, reflected huge sales across the country. From 1975 to 1994, annual U.S. garlic production more than tripled, from 140 million to 493 million pounds.
“We made garlic fun,” Mr. Christopher told Linda and Fred Griffith for their 1998 book, “Garlic Garlic Garlic: Over 200 Exceptional Recipes for the World’s Most Indispensable Ingredient.” “You have garlic festivals everywhere. And all those health considerations. It’s always in the news.”
Donald Clair Christopher was born on August 4, 1934 into a family of farmers in San Jose, California. His paternal grandfather, Ole Christopher, was a Danish immigrant who settled south of the city to grow plums, which he dried into plums. It was good, steady work, and Don’s father, Art, went with him. His mother, Clara Ann (Hansen) Christopher, was a housewife.
Along with his grandson Ken, Mr. Christopher is survived by his wife, Karen Christopher; his brother, art; his sons, Robert and Bill; his stepchildren, Erica Trinchero, Suzie Cornia, Vince Rizzi, and Kevin Rizzi; eight other grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
Don wanted to be a farmer like his father, but he found plums boring. And he wanted his own land, but the ground around San Jose was already urbanizing. After spending a few years studying business at San Jose State University, he and his brother moved south to Gilroy, where they purchased the first acreage of Christopher Ranch in 1956. They planted lima beans, sugar beets and, as an afterthought, 10 acres of garlic.
The man who sold them the land, Mr. Christopher later recalled, told him, “Young man, I’m glad to have someone coming in who wants to be a farmer.”
