This week, the stand-out fruit in most stores are blood oranges and Navels; Nadorcott mandarins; Sable black grapes; lychee and various South African plums. Otherwise, on browsing the retail shelves I would highlight the following as being interesting in the flavour stakes:
ALDI:
Oranges: Tarocco blood oranges at Aldi prices!
ASDA:
Oranges: Shamouti from Israel – the original ‘Jaffa’ orange, and very tasty.
Plums: The Plumegranate from South Africa has an intense flavour and deep red flesh.
Cherimoya: Not often seen, but Asda sells them from Spain – unusual.
LIDL:
Lychee: Available in all stores, but Lidl sell lychee loose: just scoop them up at £2.99/kg – bargain!
Pears: Italy’s favourite, the Abate Fetel, is consistently available in Lidl as a loose pear.
M&S:
Figs: Baby figs from South Africa are just delicious mouthfuls of pleasure.
Mandarins: Mandarossa blood mandarins, Mandared, from Turkey are particularly delicious, and beautiful!
Oranges: Tarocco blood oranges from Sicily: among the best.
Plums: Well worth trying are the Elizabeth plums, D’Agen, from Chile – delicate and tasty.
MORRISONS:
Figs: Baby figs from South Africa, Ronde de Bordeau.
Plums: Goldfinger from South Africa looks interesting.
SAINSBURY’S:
Melon: It’s not often you see Charantais from Latin America, but they are in Sainsbury’s.
Oranges: Tarocco and Moro blood oranges from Sicily: exquisite.
Pears: Italy’s favourite, the Abate Fetel, is one of the more flavoursome pears, and is lovely to eat when crisp.
TESCO:
Mango: Air-freighted Peruvian Kent, are a cut above the current sea-freighted offer. The fruit is more mature at harvest, so more flavoursome on ripening.
Figs: Baby figs from South Africa, Ronde de Bordeau.
Mandarins: Of the two varieties used in Kids Clementines, Tangold is far better than Clemenules at this time of year – check the labels.
WAITROSE:
Oranges: Ippolito Tarocco blood oranges from Sicily are wonderful: get them while they last.
Mandarins: The blood mandarin, Mandared, from Turkey is particularly delicious, and beautiful!
Pears: Italy’s favourite, the Abate Fetel, is one of the more flavoursome pears, and is lovely when eaten crisp.
ALL STORES:
Grapes: The seedless black grape, Sable, is still available and well-priced. It has a slightly chewy skin, but is otherwise lovely!
Blood Oranges: Sicilian Moro and Tarocco are among the most flavoursome oranges available.
Navel Oranges: This is the best time of year for Spanish oranges, particularly Navelates and Lane Lates.
Mandarins: There are a number of interesting late season varieties available, but Nadorcott is becoming the predominant variety and is usually very good. Look out for the exceptional blood mandarins: Mandarossa in M&S and Mandared in Waitrose
Plums: Bubblegum flavoured FlavorKing from South Africa are widely available and well worth the extra. As with all plums, let them soften at room temperature before eating. There are several other interesting varieties to try, such as Redplum6, Plumegranate, and Goldfinger; while the standard, cheap punnet varieties, Sunkiss, Fortune and Souvenir can be very good, especially if left to ripen and soften properly.
Look at the labels or ask store staff for:
Sable black grapes
Tarocco or Moro blood oranges
Lane Late or Navelate Navel oranges
Nadorcott mandarins
Mandarossa or mandared blood mandarins
Flavorking plums
Abate Fetel pears
©Good Fruit Guide. Recommendations on fruit varieties and types with the best taste are personal to the editor of Good Fruit Guide, and do not attempt to be exhaustive or supported by verifiable consumer research. The highlighting of fruit with the very best taste in the opinion of the editor is not intended as a judgement on the taste of varieties and types of fruit not mentioned.