Who we are

Where did Black Garlic DownVillage come from

In 2012, Panagiotis Ganotis' parents decided to move permanently to the Netherlands. Panagiotis, having finished programming and cooking, decided to stay behind and work on the family's small farm in Katichori, Pelion. There, he began experimenting with strange vegetables, setting up a small mushroom production unit in the cellar, while the farm, "Exochiko", as it was originally called, also had a small cauldron for tsipouro. Shortly after, his friend and professor at the cooking school, Grigoris Helmis, executive chef at the time at the Domotel hotel group, supported the effort, going up to the farm at the same time to help with the experiments.

Among mushrooms, tomatoes of all colors, mysterious zucchini and exotic herbs, experiments with handmade sausages, distillations, fermentations and smoking begin. In addition to production, Panagiotis also develops monitoring systems in every sector of the estate, and builds the mechanical and electronic equipment himself, often with components from various machines that he dismantled to get the pieces he wanted.

In the summer of 2013, Grigoris went up to Katichori with a plan for a black garlic ripening chamber, a material he was already using in his kitchens. They drew up the plans, and after the necessary modifications and alterations, Panagiotis built the first black garlic ripening chamber from an old small refrigerator. That was the beginning of the journey that has taken them to almost every corner of the world.

Development

After the first encouraging results, the first large chamber was constructed on the estate, production began, and Downvillage Black Garlic was created (playing on the name with "Katihori")

The first contacts for the raw material were made in Rizomylos, a small garlic village near Volos, where experiments began with various varieties of garlic, local, Greek and imported, testing the garlic and its behavior in the climatic conditions of Magnesia.

At the same time, due to the continuous increase in demand, they expanded their research and collaborations with producers in Platykambos, Larissa, and Nea Vyssa, Evros. In 2018, as demand grew, the third member of the group, Odysseas, joined the group, and they moved to the foothills of Pelion, to new facilities with all health protocols (ISO/HACCP/FDA), and began participating in exhibitions in Greece and abroad.

Next Steps

Contacts continued, and they further built their collaboration with the company, creating within its first historic store, a pop up shop in shop, the first Black Garlic Boutique. The quarantine made plans and travel difficult, and the project lasted almost a year, but the idea had now taken root.

As the Netherlands was always their first target, already having a small base, since 2014 they began participating in many outdoor and non-food markets in Amsterdam and the surrounding area, introducing Greek black garlic to the Dutch market.

Το 2018 έκαναν τις πρώτες επαφές με ολλανδούς παραγωγούς, φτιάχνοντας το πρώτο baby Βoerenkaas (φρέσκο Gouda) σε μια μικρή τυροκομική εταιρία στο Waarder της Ολλανδίας, παίρνοντας το 2019 χρυσό μετάλλιο στον ετήσιο διαγωνισμό φρέσκου τυριού. Τα πειράματα, οι ωριμάνσεις και οι επαφές με την Ολλανδική αγορά συνεχίστηκαν, και την επόμενη  χρονιά ξεκίνησαν την συνεργασία με την Amsterdam Cheese Company, ένα από τα μεγαλύτερα τυροκομεία στην Ολλανδία, η οποία δραστηριοποιείται στο Amsterdam με 5 καταστήματα στο κέντρο της πόλης. Εκεί γεννήθηκε και  το πρώτο Dutch Gouda Cheese with 4-month-aged black garlic, which was found in the second^η sales position from the first month on the shelf.

2025

At the same time, and after 4 years of collaboration with wholesalers in America, they are organizing an innovative plan to penetrate the American market, with new products designed exclusively for there.

Now, 2025 finds them in Amsterdam, where they are looking for a place to start their own physical store where someone can find their entire range, new products, a tasting room for testing and training, guest chefs, as well as a deli snack corner, creating the flagship store with the ultimate goal of Black Garlic Boutique traveling around the world through a franchise.