This Common white fig, after full ripeness and if left alone, if not eaten by birds, dries completely on its foot.

Very sweet,  'figgy' and crunchy.

For centuries exported to northern European countries.

Francisco

wow, looks like it's drying on the tree.

I heard the Hunt fig also dries like that on the tree.
I once ate a fig from the ground which was semi dry and it was heaven.

Francisco i am telling my wife for two weeks to buy me some dry figs and she always forgets.
now you made it worse :)

Love how they are drying on the tree! The interiors of all your figs are just captivating ! Color, density and jammyness!
Is that a word - jammyness?? !!     ツ

http://archive.org/stream/driedfigindustry40mehr#page/n1/mode/2up

Just found this enjoy everyone and good weekend

More fig relatd stuff here too
http://archive.org/search.php?query=Figs%20AND%20mediatype%3Atexts

Thank you all for your kind words and time looking at the pictures

Pete, yes the figs do dry on their respective branches and need to be brought down with the help of a long stick having on its end a special ferrule called 'cambio'.. You may see on the papers sent by Eli two fellows doing this job.

Pattee, I believe you can use that word ! The jammyness and juices come from caprification


Eli, Thank you for those papers. That is a nice find with a good deal of old information

I also try here and there a naturally dried Côtio picked from the tree.
The tastes and flavors are very special... the fig dries on the tree entirely with a permanently enclosed eye, keeping all its aromas well sealed!

If I am not wrong the Sarilop and Kalamata  also tend to dry on the tree

Cheers
Francisco

I am wondering is this dried like the Calabacita figs in extramadura Spain, they dry on the tree, then they pick the figs as they fall and on the branches while dried, then they pasteurize the figs in water and re dry them for commercial sale, do you know if the same thing is done for cotia?  Perhaps this is just their rule in Spain.

Côtia is one of a few cultivars producing figs which are normally dried on the tree but not exclusively.
The process you describe is common to all dry figs to insure the fruit is absolutely clean and it is followed along the Mediterranean basin on all fig producing  countries .
In Portugal (old days) in every farm house there were a wooden chest to keep the dry figs for winter.
The best varieties, black and white, after dried and cleaned, were roasted in the clay bread ovens and after cooling off , laid on that chest by layers having as a separator, some green branches of fennel.

Francisco

Thanks for the history of this Fransisco, it is really interesting to learn of these techniques and great to hear that they are still of the practice, maybe not so much much as in the trunk but I am sure some are still doing this.

I'm drooling

Thank you Jenny  and James,

The dry fig preparations described are still followed today by a few people more conscious of their costumes and traditions as well as with a healthy palate to go for what is really GOOD!

While some of you in the upper latitudes still struggle to have some figs ripe, sellers in the country markets here, already start shouting and calling buyers to see and taste their dry figs of the season, mostly Côtio, Pingo de Mel and the Smyrnas - Inchários both black and white !!

Francisco