The best apricots on Mallorca undoubtedly come from Porreres. Before moving to live on rural Mallorca, I wasn’t too fussed about apricots but, when I tasted the delicious ones from this rural town, I became a fan.
In the 1960s and ’70s, apricots were an important part of the economy of Porreres and the fruits were even exported as far as America. To this day, the town still hosts an annual celebration of the fruit, La Fira de l’Albercoc, although far fewer apricots are cultivated than in the glory days of the last century.
A saintly reason to climb a ladder
If you’re on Mallorca in June, it’s worth a visit to this one-day event, which has a great ambience and seems to bring the entire population of Porreres into the streets to enjoy all-things-apricot. June has the saint’s day for Sant Antoni de Padua – sometimes known here as Sant Antoni of the Albercocs, because it’s a traditional date to climb that rickety old ladder and pick the ripened apricots, warmed by the sun, from the tree.
At this year’s Fira, we visited stalls laden with heaps of fresh and dried apricots for sale; there were jars of preserves, baked goods, ice cream, juice, and even artisan beer – all made from the luscious fruits. My favourite variety has a rosy blush, which I believe is locally known as the rojo carlet.
We were also able to watch a group of people stoning apricots ready to be laid out to dry in the sun, and visit an interesting exhibition of artefacts and photos relating to apricot cultivation in Porreres in the past.
While there, we tried…
… a savoury tapa garnished with apricot, accompanied by a glass of artisan beer; a glass of apricot juice, and some delicious tartlets made with apple and apricot under a crumble topping. The latter were so good that we bought two more to take home for dessert the following day (with some home-made apricot and cardamom ice cream I had already made). After all that, we didn’t need dinner last Saturday evening…
Text and photos Jan Edwards ©2017
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