What's your favorite variety with old-fashioned taste?

[sjamesNorway]

There must be other threads on this subject, but I haven't been able to find them. You know what I'm looking for: the tomato that tastes like the one your father or grandfather grew, that always tasted great. Only your favorite please, not favorites. (I know it's not easy.)

Steve

[Father'sDaughter]

Of all the ones I've grown so far (not many compared to some other members), I have to say it's the Franchi cherry I grow.

It was a variety they sold as their cherry offering in 2010/2011 which I purchased after the former owner of Seeds From Italy raved about it in his newsletter. I've grown it every year since and it's my go to for tomato basil salads, bruschetta topping, pizza topping (it's amazing roasted)--basically any dish that needs that old fashioned, pure tomato flavor.

It's not a huge producer, but once it gets going I get a bowl full a week, and it's always the last plant still alive and producing at the end of the season. The fruit are perfectly cherry shaped and weight just shy of an ounce.

I've never tried any of the current Franchi cherry offerings, but the picture on the seed packets look completely different from what I grow.

[carolyn137]

Only ONE variety that my father or grandfather grew? You aren't making this easy are you. My grandfather didn't grow tomatoes but my father did, many acres of them, and I guess of all the ones he grew the one with the best old fashioned taste, great yield and whatever, would be, tada

Rutgers

Carolyn

[sjamesNorway]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

Only ONE variety that my father or grandfather grew? You aren't making this easy are you. My grandfather didn't grow tomatoes but my father did, many acres of them, and I guess of all the ones he grew the one with the best old fashioned taste, great yield and whatever, would be, tada

Rutgers

Carolyn

I've edited the first post a bit. I don't know which variety my father grew, and there are probably others that don't, so: "the tomato that tastes like..."

I've been following the JERSEY TOMATO thread. Rutgers seems to be in a kind of limbo?

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by sjamesNorway

I've edited the first post a bit. I don't know which variety my father grew, and there are probably others that don't, so: "the tomato that tastes like..."

I've been following the JERSEY TOMATO thread. Rutgers seems to be in a kind of limbo?

Yes, I see you did edit it so folks could post more than one, but since I posted just ONE, I follow directions,, I'll still stick to my original answer of Rutgers, even if it in time becomes a SUPER Rutgers when they create the NEW Rutgers.

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/R...d_Availability

Carolyn

[Tormato]

Brandywine Sudduth - superb old-fashioned taste ~1 in every 5 years, very good but not great taste ~3 in 5 years, a dud ~1 in 5 years.

[sjamesNorway]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

Yes, I see you did edit it so folks could post more than one, but since I posted just ONE, I follow directions,, I'll still stick to my original answer of Rutgers, even if it in time becomes a SUPER Rutgers when they create the NEW Rutgers.

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/R...d_Availability

Carolyn

Well then, I'm just going to have to try Rutgers (one of them anyway).

Steve

[AlittleSalt]

Next spring, we'll be growing larger tomatoes - I could answer better after tasting those.

We really like Bradley as a large tomato and Porter is our favorite old fashion tasting small tomato.

[AKmark]

I have a Sudduth's mystery cross that is at least an f5 now, it has a very rich complex tomato taste, and when you smell them, they reek like tomato. Just imagine a perfect Sudduth's in a perfect year, that is grown on the dry side.
They are shaped like a pear for the most part, a few tomatoes on the plant look like mini beefsteaks, where one end is bigger than the other. I plan on giving out a bunch of seed at the end of next season, so we can see how they do elsewhere. I also segregated them into a red line and a pink line, both are just excellent, and have the same shape. Next years plants should show little variation as I stabilize the cross.

[PaulF]

My father grew only the Boys, Girls, Betters etc. None of them were anything but spitters. We all had to pile on the sugar just to eat them. The closest to an old fashioned tomato that I really like is Old Brooks.

[Sun City Linda]

Originally Posted by PaulF

My father grew only the Boys, Girls, Betters etc. None of them were anything but spitters. We all had to pile on the sugar just to eat them. The closest to an old fashioned tomato that I really like is Old Brooks.

I like Old Brooks a lot too as I recall we have other similar favs, like Silvery Fir Tree. My Old Brooks are fairly small. Abundant, but only 4 oz at best and some smaller. I keep reading seed catalog descriptions of 8 or more oz. What is your experience?

[Hellmanns]

To me, there is but only one perfectly flavored 'mater, and that would be Sudduth's Brandywine. A great flavor every year here, some years I would describe it as orgasmic..

[barefootgardener]

Brandywine.. Been growing it for over 25 years. One of the first heirloom varieties I started growing, and since then it is hard to find any that compare, and that says a lot.

Ginny

[Cole_Robbie]

My best 'old-time red' of the year was a Peiping Chieh.

[Ed of Somis]

I have to say....the Brandywine Cowlick's that Camo had touted is really, really good. It takes me back...I sure wonder how it might compare to Sudduth's.