Future's Fourth Florida Fruit Feast! (Plus reviews)

[Future]

I need to update me list based on what we bought at Fairchild but suffice to say we secured a few I was keen to get my hands on again namely Mammou and Ivory.  Piña Volada was also purchased in quantity. These alone made it a good day....more on that later.

Dinner:
Nam Doc Mai
Pim Seng Mun
Lemon Zest (finally!)

This Nam Doc was equal to breakfast, silky smooth and divine.  What is not to love about this mango?

PSM remains a solid performer.

Lemon Zest.  What can I say.  This mango has an unprecedented combination of features for me.   All at once it has the sweetness, floral tones, fruitiness, spiciness, mild chalkiness of all my top rated mangoes.  What a heck of a combination.  Ok LZ fans, I can see what the big deal is.  Given its size advantage of PPK alongside these combinations of features, I'm sold on LZ.  To be sure,  I find this mango more cerebral than others in that you really have to pay attention to the signals it sends off.  Different parts of the same mango actually has different intensities of different aspects.  As complex as PPK is, lemon zest is complex in a more complex way.  All told, two thumbs up!

[Future]

Today at Fairchild:

Mammou
Mesk
Sigsiput
Merritt Island Saigon
Ivory
Provost (not sure how I got this)
Philippina
Myatrynat
Manzanillo
Nelepetite
Golek

[Future]

Lunch:
Fruit Punch
PKM
PPK
Lemon Zest

Fruit punch is a performer: big, complex, fiberless and fruity.  This has a promising future.

Pram Kai Mea remains a solid performer.   Sweet and smooth.

PPK: despite the recent experience with LZ, PPK remains in my top 4 performers.  Could eat one any day.

Lemon Zest: a new entry into my top 4 (including Ice Cream, Ivory).   Having eaten over 70 mango varieties, enough said. 

Dinner: Fairchild, Mallika, Lemon Zest

Fairchild had a spoiled spot but once cut out, it was fine.  Easy to eat, no fiber, great smooth taste.  This polyembryonic fruit is said (by Noris Ledesma) to be good for pot culture.  Good mango.

Mallika: Sleepdoc (see notes below) donated a ripe Mallika (among many others) to our cause and it was the real deal.  A good mango.

Lemon Zest: Sleepdoc also donated this gem to our cause and it, once again, did not disappoint.  Splendid. 

We visited Sleepdoc this morning ostensibly to get our hands on his Khun See mango.  This is my first time to his place, which is amazing.  His jackfruit, mango, caimito, lychee and even fruiting breadfruit trees are amazing!  And can't forget the fish...giant goldfish and huge catfish....

The mosquitoes are monstrosities but ignore that and note the 40 lb fused jackfruits and divine mangoes hanging.  Multi- grafted varieties of many kinds.  Truly impressive.  I haven't finished noting all that as given but from memory Angie, Khun See, Mallika, Lemon Zest....there were more.  We sampled several Khun See mangoes on the spot in a range of ripeness.  I love the chalky texture of the unripe fruits.  And the taste great fully ripe also.  Sleepdoc has a midrange half ripe preference which is also interesting. 

All told, a great visit.  The jackfruit and chempadak seedlings were inspiring.  I have to get my in the ground and these were amazingly big in a short period of time...

That's all for today...

[Tropicdude]

Look forward to your reviews on Myatrynat.  and some of those other ones you mentioned that I am not very familiar with other than just maybe have seen them written down on lists somewhere. 

Nelepetite
Golek
Mammou
Mesk
Sigsiput
Provost

[Future]

Breakfast: Fruit Punch, Seacrest, Choc Anon

Lunch: I am not remembering...

Dinner: Seacrest, Crystal, Zill

Choc Anon's fruity pineapple hints edged out Fruit Punch which was over-ripe, and Seacrest for breakfast.  Seacrest was close though.  It is a large mango with a relatively small seed and nice fruity high notes.

Crystal is a Zills mango that will not likely be released. It is similar in size and shape to Seacrest but less punchy in flavor. 

This evening's Seacrest won hands down with perfect ripeness and zip.  Really nice mango.

We have many ripe fruits lined up for tomorrow as we also visit Merritt Island for the first time...

A story on Lemon Zest: yesterday my friend had one for the first time.  I was otherwise busy so I didn't notice how quiet he got after eating it.  As I cut into a Fruit Punch and offered him some he politely declined.  He said he couldn't eat anything else after eating LZ.  Period.  Another mind blown by a Lemon Zest.

[murahilin]

Breakfast: Fruit Punch, Seacrest, Choc Anon

Lunch: I am not remembering...

Dinner: Seacrest, Crystal, Zill

Choc Anon's fruity pineapple hints edged out Fruit Punch which was over-ripe, and Seacrest for breakfast.  Seacrest was close though.  It is a large mango with a relatively small seed and nice fruity high notes.

Crystal is a Zills mango that will not likely be released. It is similar in size and shape to Seacrest but less punchy in flavor. 

This evening's Seacrest won hands down with perfect ripeness and zip.  Really nice mango.

We have many ripe fruits lined up for tomorrow as we also visit Merritt Island for the first time...

A story on Lemon Zest: yesterday my friend had one for the first time.  I was otherwise busy so I didn't notice how quiet he got after eating it.  As I cut into a Fruit Punch and offered him some he politely declined.  He said he couldn't eat anything else after eating LZ.  Period.  Another mind blown by a Lemon Zest.

I am very glad that you and your friend have been able to experience the greatness that is the Lemon Zest. If anyone outside of the US wants some LZ budwood send me a PM.

[Future]

Look forward to your reviews on Myatrynat.  and some of those other ones you mentioned that I am not very familiar with other than just maybe have seen them written down on lists somewhere. 

Nelepetite
Golek
Mammou
Mesk
Sigsiput
Provost

I still have yet to eat any this year but did review last year: http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?topic=6365.msg84810#msg84810

Dr. Campbell predicted it would win the tasting at Fairchild one year and also wrote a paper about its commercial potential.  Search for the name on the forum - there is precious little on the web about this mango - and I have links there.

[Future]

Breakfast: Pickering, PPK, Coconut Cream

This Pickering had soft spots indicating it was gone past its prime but aside from these, this mango was very fine eating.  Sweet, fruity and floral tones.  Very smooth taste.  No issues with Pickering.

PPK continues to please.  We ate two that were not fully ripe by PPK standards.  The amazing thing about this mango is the range if tastes it gives you depending on how ripe it is.  In this case, it was more floral than rich.  Chomping on the see for the last micro ounce of fruit good. 

Coconut Cream:  these prized mangoes I had the great fortune to secure two.  The ripened up nicely, perhaps slightly underripe but they seemed on point.  While not as insanely complex as the shows topping Lemon Zest, I can certainly see why CC has so many fans and how it secured the name.  I really enjoyed this mango.  The name says it all.  Divine.

Time to head to Merritt Island...

[Future]

Dinner:
Provost: large mango but very mild.  Not a horrible taste but bland relative to others.
LZ: I may have to concede and call this mango #1.
PPK: Lovely. 

Breakfast: Lemon Zest: what else is there to say.  These seem to hold firm ripe condition for a considerable number of days.  Most I have direct from Zills are in pristine condition.  no blemishes.

Taralay: this was a larger one of the prior one and was just as good.  Smooth, silky dessert flesh.  Very nice mango.

Last note: as I was prepping seeds - and that is a whole notha story - I noted the "Guava" mango from Zills is polyembryonic. In speaking to Walter he shared the story of how it came about.  It was saved from a road widening project when someone contacted him about it.  The original source unknown.  Some clients of his were eating them and remarked it tasted like guava.  Thus he called it guava, subject to any other name/source be found later. 

[mangomanic12]

Great reviews Future. I love the taste of the Pin sen Mun Also. I also was down there in Homestead this weekend at the Fruit and spice park. Ate too many mangoes to count. I visited Lara farms and purchased a 3 gal pin sen mun and a Manalita. For all you guys that have not gotten a chance to visit South Florida in the season of fruit especially in June and July  please try and get there you will have so much fun . Plan a trip for next year. I was supposed to come by and visit Sleepdoc but i was driving down from West palm late Sat and was time constrained. I had a lot of fun especially stopping on Krome ave sampling  fruit , food and drinks !

[Future]

Great reviews Future. I love the taste of the Pin sen Mun Also. I also was down there in Homestead this weekend at the Fruit and spice park. Ate too many mangoes to count. I visited Lara farms and purchased a 3 gal pin sen mun and a Manalita. For all you guys that have not gotten a chance to visit South Florida in the season of fruit especially in June and July  please try and get there you will have so much fun . Plan a trip for next year. I was supposed to come by and visit Sleepdoc but i was driving down from West palm late Sat and was time constrained. I had a lot of fun especially stopping on Krome ave sampling  fruit , food and drinks !

You are onto a winner with that PSM tree.  Dupuis Saigon is comparable.  Right on.

[Future]

Lunch: Orange Sherbert, Zill Indochinese (ZINC), Coconut Cream, Po Payu Kalay.

First, I dare anyone to lineup a better lunch combo than these.  The only thing missing is a LZ.

OS is simply divine.  I can see why Murahilin goes ballistic at the sight if them.  This is a very good selection that to me seems like a blend of PPK and Lemon Zest.  It is not as complex as LZ but carries all the punch needed to get your attention.

Zinc: Walter Zill tells me he believes this is a descendant of Camodiania.  My friend rated it higher than LZ, not due to complexity but smoothness and succulence.  It has that slight chalky flavour while  I adore.  It is sweet, fruity and smooth as silk.  Chris at Truly Tropical advised me to add it to my order as it is in her top 5 mangoes of all time.  I can now see why.

CC: the last of the CC met wi its fate today and it was a good one.  Words cannot describe the delight that this mango is.  Be warned, you may need to lie down on the couch afterwards...

PPK: this remains a top tier choice for complex, sweet, juicy flavour.  So busy chomping on the last bits of fruit on the seed that juice made it almost to my elbow.

Nuff said.

[Future]

Updated list of what we have:

Pickering
Fruit Punch
PPK
Orange Sherbert
Florigon
Taralay
Edgar
Lemon Zest
Coconut Cream
Gary
Dupuis Saigon
Nam Doc Mai
Crystal
Cogshall
Pram Kai Mea
Zill Indo-Chinese
Duncan
Pim Seng Mun
Fairchild
Glenn
Choc Anon
Dot
Seacrest
Taralay
Glenn
Ivory
Edward
Maha Chanok plus two different MC seedling fruits
Cushman
"Harry Carrie"
Young (aka Tebow)
Angie
Sweet Tart
Ewais
Okrung
Ivory
Mallika
Zill
Tong Dam
Khun See

[Future]

Yesterday's dinner:
Ewais, Rosigold, Khun See

Ewais: don't be fooled by the outward appearance.  This is a VERY fine mango.  It has a rich flavour, smooth that can hang with the best if them.  It will give Taralay, Mallika, Rosigold a run for their money although it stops short of ZINC territory. Ewais carried the day for dinner.

Rosigold was slightly overripe but nonetheless tasted very good.  Succulent and juicy, fiber free fruit. 

Khun See remains one of the fruits i enjoy most.  There is no other mango i have ever eaten with such a wide range of stages in which to eat.  Sleepdoc, I know not where you sourced this tree but it is a winner for its uniqueness alone.  Eaten when it just turns it offers a crunchy yet sweet taste.  Eaten later the flesh turns orange and offers a delectable experenience.  Love it. 

Breakfast: Taralay, Tong Dam, Choc Anon, Philippina

Taralay: this is one of only a few of these that were available.  A gem of a mango with super fine smooth flesh.  This one was small but still a winner.

Choc Anon: this mango seems to keep fairly well.  I have had it in a yellow stage for 8 days at room temperature without issue.  This started for form spots but 90% of what was inside was just fine.  At this stage of ripeness the acidity seemed to me to rise and the pineapple hints came through stronger.  A good mango.

Philippina: a small pointy mango with a rich and sweet taste.  We bought a few of these and they are enjoyable.  Easy to eat.

[gunnar429]

seems like you enjoyed almost all of these cultivars.  Any that you didn't care for?

[Future]

seems like you enjoyed almost all of these cultivars.  Any that you didn't care for?

Provost comes to mind.  Tong Dam was also so so but I think it was too ripe.  Didn't realize they stay dark green when ripe.  Harry's seedling Maha Chanoks were also so so.  There were probably more but I have refined my selection each year for the last 4 years the selections get more and more superior each year.

[Future]

Lunch: Dupuis Saigon, Lemon Zest, Piña Colada, Orange Sherbet

This is a hands down all star lunch.  The last of the Dupuis Saigon's went out in style.  Very delicious mango: juicy, sweet, floral, good flesh to seed ratio and seems to keep fairly well.  Divine.

Lemon Zest: If this is an all-start lunch, LZ is the all-star MVP.  These remain in good condition heading into their 9th day.  And they remain número uno.

My first Piña Colada.  I can imagine whomever selected this variety, sitting down having harvested the first fruit and sampling it...silence would overwhelm them as they sought the input of another to verify heir taste buds were not deceiving them...and the consensus of their aids would be: Piña Colada!  Small but packs a punch well above its weight.  Glad I have 5 more...

Dinner: Khun See, Piña Colada, Zill Indochinese, Orange Sherbert.

Another all-star line up.  I have successfully turned my friend into a mango snob on this trip.  Tommy Atkins, no more.  He adores PC, marinates in OS and dives deeply into ZINC.  Khun See is a mango of connoisseurs.  This one was ripe and right on the money.

How do we top this?

Merritt island report: we visited yesterday and it was an interesting place, sandwiched between two rivers.  Toppy's was closed when we got there and never returned our calls.  Marilyn Kings had some green NDM which we purchased, 8 for $10.  Ensey's had mostly Haden and we looked, saw but did not buy.  We did see some amazing homes, larger yards, lined with mangoes.  Fruit stands by the side of the road, largely unmanned here and there.  All in all, we are glad we went.  We did get some turpentine mangoes also.  A good day.

[Future]

Breakfast: Taralay, Nelepetite, Pram Kai Mamey, lemon zest, Carrie

Nelepetite is new to the table.  A small yellow and red mango with a kidney like shape.  It was a decent little mango, nothing off the harts but nothing offensive either.  Fiber free and reasonable taste.

Pram Kai Mea I haven't had so nice what seems like ages ago last week.  Thin seed, exquisite flesh texture and taste.  A very enjoyable mango by any standards.  Has some complexity to it, which is noteworthy given its SE Asian origins.

I had a small overripe Carrie which was lately rendered to a smoothie.  I did eat around the seed though which had a nice acidic bit to it.  Carrie is a good mango from memory but this may not have represented it well, even though it was ok to eat.

Lemon Zest.  We are down to only one left now....

[mangomanic12]

Joe thanks so much for your reviews. I enjoy reading them.Did you get a chance to visit fruit and Spice park as yet? I tried more than 50 Varieties this past weekend.
BTW i got to warn you. If you are a true mango lover like me you will go through depression when there are none to eat. I would suggest save some and cut up and freeze for winter smoothies to extend the season somewhat. 

Mike

[Future]

Joe thanks so much for your reviews. I enjoy reading them.Did you get a chance to visit fruit and Spice park as yet? I tried more than 50 Varieties this past weekend.
BTW i got to warn you. If you are a true mango lover like me you will go through depression when there are none to eat. I would suggest save some and cut up and freeze for winter smoothies to extend the season somewhat. 

Mike

Thanks Mike.  By the way, this is future, not joe.

[Future]

Lunch: Golek, Ivory, Orange Sherbert, Mammou, Piña Colada

Golek is new to me.  It is on the small side, green and turning slightly orangish in places when ripe.  It is a stringy mango with a zippy acidic those taste.  Different, not in  a bad way but mango snobs don't do fiber...

Mammou: this fruit I got one of some years ago and it went too far, mostly spoiled but had some sweet parts I could at last eat.  It was striking enough to rate quite highly to me given its condition.  Hence I w pleased to see it make the table at Fairchild this year, in quantity.  Dr. Campbell says the origins of this mango are unclear in that all their discussions with people in Indochina find no one familiar with it.  Based on prior experience, I cut this one earlier than I normally would a mango.  Still green yet the skin began to wrinkinle a little.  The flesh was still semi-crisp and yet it tasted good, mild but fairly sweet.  It is a fine mango.  Sleepdoc may want to look into this one as while it is yellow on the inside, not or like Khun See, it is another unique not fully ripe but good mango varieties.  Thin seed leaves lots of edible flesh to go around. 

[Future]

Dinner: went out for dinner so only had room for Orange Sherbert upon our return.  I am campaigning for this budwood to be released!  Excellent experience with this mango.

[DurianLover]

Joe thanks so much for your reviews. I enjoy reading them.Did you get a chance to visit fruit and Spice park as yet? I tried more than 50 Varieties this past weekend.

I went there today. Its really not a place for mango tasting.  All varieties I picked from the ground tasted worst than properly picked. I was throwing all mangoes away after one bite.  Those fallen fruits are not representative of true variety potential. You can kind of get an idea what properly picked variety may taste like. Better off go to Pine Island nursery 5 minutes away and get Mallikas at $1/lb!

[BestDay]

Future, thanks for the great write ups. Keep them coming!  I hope to one day have a trip like this.

Bill

[Future]

Future, thanks for the great write ups. Keep them coming!  I hope to one day have a trip like this.

Bill

Thanks.

It has been a great trip.

Lunch: Mammou

I figured this mango out.  Eat when green and the skin wrinkles slightly.  Delicate like Ivory, different parts of the fruit have different tastes.  It is medium sweet with medium fruity-tones.  More refreshing that anything.  I enjoy this one a lot.