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Jul 17, 2024 4:14 PM CST
California Central Valley (Zone 8b)
Region: California
They stayed in the cages and all are from the dwarf tomato project (except the giant Purple one). I pulled them up by their cages and planted a stake through the cage. One fell over again so now has a deepter stake.
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Jul 17, 2024 5:40 PM CST
Name: Critter (Jill)
Frederick, MD (Zone 6b)
Charter ATP Member Million Pollinator Garden Challenge Critters Allowed Butterflies Hummingbirder Cat Lover
Bee Lover Region: Mid-Atlantic Cottage Gardener Garden Photography Tropicals Hibiscus
That's a great report!! I'm glad the flavor isn't just "earthy," LOL. I hope you'll consider fermenting and saving some seeds to share/trade. (If I remember correctly, you can save seeds as long as you aren't selling either the seeds or the plants, right?)
We're all learners, doers, teachers.
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Jul 17, 2024 10:21 PM CST
California Central Valley (Zone 8b)
Region: California
critterologist said: (If I remember correctly, you can save seeds as long as you aren't selling either the seeds or the plants, right?)


Yes, that's what I understood too. I feel as though i should be starting more from the pieces I keep tossing but that hasn't happened. Smiling
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Jul 18, 2024 3:14 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Ken Isaac
Bountiful, Utah, USA (Zone 7a)
#bountifulexoticsnursery
critterologist said: I'm glad the flavor isn't just "earthy,"

Setting aside the "is it ripe, or not yet" issue, which still needs investigation from those growing it on this thread...
I could understand some might say "it's not sweet" and/or "it's not acidic" to conclude a middle ground - and find that middle ground to be 'bland' (or earthy, etc..) if it's the other two extremes you prefer, or even expect, from a tomato. I'd love to hear your opinion if you get to taste one, @critterologist!

I can't overlook the visual component to the taste, and will expect it to 'flavor' the results from everyone who gives me feedback. Honestly, with such a visual 'deception,' looking so similar to both grapes and blackberries, it's almost a mind trick to say "no, it's not those, it's a tomato." Honestly, the Sunsugar sweetness shocked me similarly when I first tasted them, but I've grown to love them.
And as proof that the purple tomato WILL SUFFER a bit from this, and spoken as if to children, because it is a science activity for kids:

Scientific American said:

Tricky Taste Test: Do You Taste with Your Eyes?
A tasteful science activity from Science Buddies
(activity quoted only in part - see link for whole article)

From an early age we learn to associate colors with flavors. When something is orange, we expect an "orange" flavor. If you tasted orange pudding, you would be surprised to find it had a mint flavor. Discrepancies between the appearance of foods and their tastes can make it more difficult to identify the flavoring.

Research has shown the appearance of food can dramatically affect how it tastes to us. In one study participants ate a plate of normal-looking steak and French fries. All the participants said they enjoyed the food, and it tasted fine. When the lights were brightened, however, it was revealed that the steak was dyed a blue color, and the fries were green. When they saw this many of the participants refused to eat any more of the food—and a few even became sick.

https://www.scientificamerican...

Using three different colored liquids in clear cups, all containing the exact same juice, it allows the kids to decide that visual stimulus is why you picked a 'favorite' when they were all the same juice. I gotta try this one at the next family dinner!

An issue for us here, though, also may be our knowledge of the GMO process to create the tomato-
Anyone growing purple snapdragons AND the purple tomato AND is an adventurous eater? Whistling
Owner: Bountiful Exotics Nursery
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Last edited by kenisaac Jul 18, 2024 4:52 PM Icon for preview
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Jul 18, 2024 3:29 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Ken Isaac
Bountiful, Utah, USA (Zone 7a)
#bountifulexoticsnursery
Lucy68 said: All the tomatoes were lying down in their cages (I hadn't gotten around to staking the cages yet) and the Purple Tomato was on the top of the heap

Lucy-
Sad, and I've found that before-
If you're growing these again-
Find a gardener who loves rebar, and welding, and tomatoes, and will make a trade!

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Owner: Bountiful Exotics Nursery
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Avatar for Toedtoes
Jul 18, 2024 4:06 PM CST
Sacramento, Ca
I read it as it's not overly sweet but not acidic. Meaning it's a nice level of sweetness.

I remember trying the cotton candy grapes once. To me they were overly sweet. It ruined the flavor of the grape because I couldn't get past that sweetness. It sounds like the purple tomato avoids that issue without going too far the other way.

As for the study and taste test, I wonder. While I agree colors do propose a specific taste in some cases, I think it is more about something simply looking appealing over tasting it differently.

A blue steak is not appealing. Blue is not a natural food color and often suggests mold, rot, etc. So dying a steak blue wouldn't necessarily change the taste, but would simply trigger our gag reflex of having eaten something bad. So did the people taste what they expected or did they simply see the blue and decide that they had eaten something that was going bad? If you had told them ahead of time that you died it green and they then saw it was blue would they have had the same reaction? Or would they have simply thought "oh the green dye makes it look blue" and been fine.

With the apple juice taste test, people will obviously rate the glasses according to their color preferences. If you don't like the color blue, then the blue juice will rate lower. Is that because you actually tasted it differently or just because you don't like the color blue? I suspect the latter.

Then there is the assumption of flavors according to colors. I love fresh grapes - any color. I really really dislike grape flavored products - popsicles, juice, medicine, etc. So if I see a purple dyed food product, I will assume it is grape flavored before tasting unless told differently. And I will not want to taste it because I don't like grape flavoring. But if I do taste it and it doesn't taste like grape flavoring, then I won't rate it's taste on my dislike of grape flavoring. I like plums that are purple and purple potatoes and purple tomatoes. I don't dislike them because I assume purple foods are grape flavored.

And, of course, it IS a proven fact that green waffles and red whipped cream tastes better than red waffles and green whipped cream. Red waffles are too dry.
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Jul 20, 2024 8:51 AM CST
Name: Critter (Jill)
Frederick, MD (Zone 6b)
Charter ATP Member Million Pollinator Garden Challenge Critters Allowed Butterflies Hummingbirder Cat Lover
Bee Lover Region: Mid-Atlantic Cottage Gardener Garden Photography Tropicals Hibiscus
Those rebar tomato cages are great! Unless you have a source for recycled rebar, though, they're going to be expensive (just checked Lowe's prices, $36 if cutting down 10 ft lengths), albeit cheaper than Texas Tomato Cages.

Interesting about color and taste perception. My mom always served green food on St. Pat's, claimed it was a leprechaun up to tricks. We loved having friends over that day -- green milk, green mashed potatoes -- some would eat up and others wouldn't! My daughter despised that leprechaun.
We're all learners, doers, teachers.
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Jul 24, 2024 10:39 AM CST
California Central Valley (Zone 8b)
Region: California
I ate my first Purple Tomatoes yesterday. I wish I could take a photo of my happy taste buds. Man are those things good! Lovey dubby
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Jul 24, 2024 11:03 AM CST
Name: Critter (Jill)
Frederick, MD (Zone 6b)
Charter ATP Member Million Pollinator Garden Challenge Critters Allowed Butterflies Hummingbirder Cat Lover
Bee Lover Region: Mid-Atlantic Cottage Gardener Garden Photography Tropicals Hibiscus
Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!
We're all learners, doers, teachers.
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Jul 24, 2024 11:42 AM CST
Name: Sandy B.
Ford River Twp, Michigan UP (Zone 4b)
(Zone 4b-maybe 5a)
Charter ATP Member Bee Lover Butterflies Birds I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Million Pollinator Garden Challenge
Seed Starter Vegetable Grower Greenhouse Region: United States of America Region: Michigan Enjoys or suffers cold winters
Lucy68 said: I ate my first Purple Tomatoes yesterday. I wish I could take a photo of my happy taste buds. Man are those things good! Lovey dubby


Happy to hear another good review of the flavor! Thumbs up
“The new dawn blooms as we free it, for there is always light –
if only we’re brave enough to see it, if only we’re brave enough to be it.”
~Amanda Gorman~

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Jul 24, 2024 5:12 PM CST
Name: Rick R.
Minneapolis,MN, USA z4b,Dfb/a
Garden Photography The WITWIT Badge Seed Starter Wild Plant Hunter Region: Minnesota Hybridizer
Garden Sages I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Plant Identifier Million Pollinator Garden Challenge
Good... how?
When the debate is lost, slander becomes the tool of the losers. - Socrates
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Jul 24, 2024 6:17 PM CST
Name: Sandy B.
Ford River Twp, Michigan UP (Zone 4b)
(Zone 4b-maybe 5a)
Charter ATP Member Bee Lover Butterflies Birds I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Million Pollinator Garden Challenge
Seed Starter Vegetable Grower Greenhouse Region: United States of America Region: Michigan Enjoys or suffers cold winters
This post from Ken:

kenisaac said: First comments from myself and my wife, and the handful of friends I gave them to for a try-

"Impressive vine size and prolific bearing in the heat"

"I am completely in love with the purple grape tomatoes. I will definitely want more next year ❤️❤️❤️"


My taste impressions: Good taste, meaty (fleshy) with noticeably thicker skin (peel) than a sunsugar, but not objectionable. Not acidic, (no 'tomato bite') but not overly sweet, either. I actually do adore Sunsugars, and so Sunsugars probably will remain my favorite for snacking by the handful. The purple is very dramatic when cut, though, and would really compliment a salad along with orange Sunsugars and red tomatoes. The purple is consistent throughout, and is a crowd pleaser, as the pictures show. The juice is also somewhat purple, reminding me of a concord grapes' juice, but not as purple.

Another family member, though, isn't impressed as it's hard to tell when they are ripe, and she thinks she tried them when unripe- but reports no tomatoes in her garden are doing well in the heat wave. She'll let them ripen more and give me more feedback as the season progresses.

Pictures!

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“The new dawn blooms as we free it, for there is always light –
if only we’re brave enough to see it, if only we’re brave enough to be it.”
~Amanda Gorman~

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Aug 10, 2024 8:24 AM CST
Name: Sandy B.
Ford River Twp, Michigan UP (Zone 4b)
(Zone 4b-maybe 5a)
Charter ATP Member Bee Lover Butterflies Birds I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Million Pollinator Garden Challenge
Seed Starter Vegetable Grower Greenhouse Region: United States of America Region: Michigan Enjoys or suffers cold winters
I was happy to discover half a dozen ripe tomatoes on my plant yesterday - had to immediately do a taste test and I love the flavor! They are very juicy, my first impression was "sweet," but not mild like a lot of varieties that claim to be sweet, a nice combination of sweet and acid. And the color is gorgeous - I can't wait to make a salad with these and some of the yellow, green and pink tomatoes from my "micro dwarf" plants Smiling .
“The new dawn blooms as we free it, for there is always light –
if only we’re brave enough to see it, if only we’re brave enough to be it.”
~Amanda Gorman~

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Aug 16, 2024 10:21 AM CST
California Central Valley (Zone 8b)
Region: California
My daughter will not eat a raw tomato - she says they are unbearably bitter and can't even swallow them. But every year I pick a tomato and she tries to eat it, just to see if they taste the same. Cooked, no problem. She grows tomatoes to add to soups and make sauces.

So this year, I gave her a Purple tomato. This is the first time ever she has chewed and swallowed it! She says its still bitter but not as, and is almost barely tolerable. Hmmm....

Probably no tomato sandwiches in her future but what is it that makes Purple tomatoes less bitter to her?
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Aug 16, 2024 10:28 AM CST
Name: Nancy
Northeastern Illinois (Zone 5b)
Hummingbirder Birds Bird Bath, Fountain and Waterfall Hydrangeas Adeniums Daylilies
Salvias Container Gardener Enjoys or suffers cold winters Butterflies Dragonflies Million Pollinator Garden Challenge
It all has to do with our genes. I remember doing a test in high school tasting a strip of paper, and it was either bitter or sweet to each individual person. It's like the harder white parts of some lettuce... some find it really bitter and throw those white parts next to the crown away. And some of us (me included), find that to be the sweetest part of the lettuce.
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Aug 16, 2024 11:15 AM CST
California Central Valley (Zone 8b)
Region: California
Yes, I remember that test. But I was wondering what's different about Purple tomatoes that makes them less bitter tasting to her.
Avatar for Toedtoes
Aug 16, 2024 2:22 PM CST
Sacramento, Ca
I don't know if there is something identifiable that's different just that it simply is a different variety with a slightly different taste that she finds more palatable.

It also could be more about texture. I found that may foods I didn't like the taste ended up being more about the texture. Coconut is a good example. I hate it. I can taste it in many products made with coconut oil and that turns me off those products. But if it is a mild flavoring I am OK with it. After working it out, I realized that I hate the texture of coconut and a strong coconut flavor makes me "experience" that texture even if it is not there.
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Aug 16, 2024 6:15 PM CST
Name: Sandy B.
Ford River Twp, Michigan UP (Zone 4b)
(Zone 4b-maybe 5a)
Charter ATP Member Bee Lover Butterflies Birds I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Million Pollinator Garden Challenge
Seed Starter Vegetable Grower Greenhouse Region: United States of America Region: Michigan Enjoys or suffers cold winters
Lucy, that is certainly interesting about your daughter finding the purple tomatoes at least tolerable! I wonder if @kenisaac or @Hortica might have any thoughts about that? I'm all ears!
“The new dawn blooms as we free it, for there is always light –
if only we’re brave enough to see it, if only we’re brave enough to be it.”
~Amanda Gorman~

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Aug 16, 2024 11:26 PM CST
N. California (Zone 10b)
Hmm… FWIW I am a phenylalanine taster and in college was even briefly on a tasting team (but I am not a super-taster), and so I know a bit about competition tasting.
As a child I did not like tomatoes or mushrooms or any high-umami foods. Now I love them.
Bitterness took longer to warm up to. Now I can do bitters and hoppy IPAs.
I am somewhat of a foodie… I'm a big fan of Japanese cuisine, and yet do not love all of the odd textures (I'm looking at you, natto).
At one point I grew a lot of old tomato varieties and found some really interesting flavors, and some real duds. Also cared for a large apple orchard with over 200 varieties.
So my taste buds have had some experience.
I am not sure any of that adds light on this discussion. I do know that taste and smells are idiosyncratic, and I respect our differences.
I hope I will soon get to experience this new tomato.
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Aug 17, 2024 9:26 AM CST
Name: Critter (Jill)
Frederick, MD (Zone 6b)
Charter ATP Member Million Pollinator Garden Challenge Critters Allowed Butterflies Hummingbirder Cat Lover
Bee Lover Region: Mid-Atlantic Cottage Gardener Garden Photography Tropicals Hibiscus
I looked up natto... i once soaked some beans overnight, and they fermented on me, so I tossed them out. They looked (and probably smelled) a lot like natto! Now I do a quick "soak" by boiling for 5 minutes or pressure cooking for a minute.

I'm looking forward to trying these purple tomatoes at some point also. Doesn't hurt that purple is my favorite color!
We're all learners, doers, teachers.

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