Shunkokan taste

[JSea]

I was wondering if anyone has tasted Shunkokan and can comment on the flavour. I've heard varying reports that it tastes like a sweet lemon, to that it just tastes like an orange?
Also if anyone has tasted the peel that would also be great info.


Picture from a Japanese news segment about a grower of Shunkokan ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sU88t3QwrE )

Tintori also has some attractive pictures and description of it: https://www.oscartintori.it/en/prodotto/shunkokan-orange/

Shunkokan if you haven't heard about it is a rare Japanese Citrus, hardly grown at all. Genetic testing has found that it's a hybrid between an unknown pummelo/grapefruit seed parent, and a Yatsushiro pollen parent. Yatsushiro itself is a hybrid between a kunenbo and kishu and presents similar to a satsuma: https://citrusvariety.ucr.edu/crc3880

Shunkokan has also been used as part of new rootstock breeding strategies in Florida, although I don't know why yet. Shunkokan was tested decades ago and found to be extremely tolerant of tristeza.

[Radoslav]

Plant from Tintori nursery is SRA 771.
This accession came to the University of California via W.P. Bitters in 1.1. 1963 as a seed from Shizuoka pref., Shimizu-shi, Japan.
Catalogue number CRC 3476 citrus shunkokan.

In 1987 budwood was imported to SRA INRA-CIRAD France screenhouses. After declared as a disease free, it received SRA number 771.
Citrus shunkokan is a very good citrus.

[JSea]

Citrus shunkokan is a very good citrus.

Have you tasted it to say that hehe?

[Radoslav]

Yes, I grow SRA 771 and another plant of unknown origin, plants look identical, but fruits from unknown plant are usually seedless and taste is better than SRA 771. Taste is bland, when fruits hang too long on tree.

[JSea]

Is the flavour more towards lemon or orange, or something else? What would be the most similar Citrus taste-wise that you know?

[Radoslav]

Sweet, pummelo orange mix. This winter It had very thick peel and fruit was bland and bigger than usually, too long on tree.

[JSea]

Thank you for the info. Your taste report is in the middle of the other ones so I think it's the most accurate.

[Samodelkin]

Fruit size 100-250g.
The skin of the fruit is thick. The pulp is yellow, coarse-grained, like pomelo. The taste is sweet and crispy, there is little juice.

[JSea]

Thanks again for the taste report

[Radoslav]

This year, I collected fruits while the rind was still partly green. The pulp was juicy, not granulated like last year. Tastes like pummelo with some lemon tones. The fruit itself ressembles small pummelo a lot, it has tendency  to form thick albedo, if there is not enough heat and sunlight during season too.  Membranes are a bit hard. One or two seeds per fruit.

[Luisport]

Congratulations, looks really great!

[JSea]

Thanks Radoslav for further taste notes. Interesting that it seems a lot like a mini-pomelo. I wonder if you've tasted Kinkoji to compare it with that?

[70Malibu]

Radoslav, can you take a few photos of the other end of the fruit?

Your fruit looks very similar to my unknown citrus from Japan, Tokyo.

The wife of the friend (passed away) told me this is all she knows.



Maybe someone here might know this variety, it translates to "first bloom"

[Radoslav]

Radoslav, can you take a few photos of the other end of the fruit?

Your fruit looks very similar to my unknown citrus from Japan, Tokyo.

The wife of the friend (passed away) told me this is all she knows.



Maybe someone here might know this variety, it translates to "first bloom"

You wrote はっさく,  it means Hassaku.
Hassaku is bitter japan citrus. There are two forms, normal and red "Beni Hassaku 紅はっさく／紅八朔".

Here is picture of the end of my shunkokan fruit.

[70Malibu]

Oops, now you know how much I can read. I can speak it but never learned how to read the writings.

Thanks for the proper translation, but my fruits are not bitter or sour. I think it is maybe just a little more sour than a Sanbokan.

Thanks for posting the bottom side of your fruit. Let me pick some fruits of my citrus fruit and see if you might recognize it. It is not sour, but I will taste it again and make a brix reading today, brix =8.6

[JSea]

Also Radoslav, if you can please taste the albedo I would very much like to hear how it tastes

[70Malibu]

 Radoslav, ok, I picked some fruits and checked with the wikipedia photo and description. It does sound like what I have, thank you.

I took photos of my fruits, will post later tonight. If you need any seeds let me know. As I said, it is not sour.

[Radoslav]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-GmyTPp0TQ
btw.: My Hassaku is really bitter/sweet- more than grapefruit.

[Luisport]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-GmyTPp0TQ
btw.: My Hassaku is really bitter/sweet- more than grapefruit.

Hello my friend. I have one Hassaku tree with fruits already. Im curious if your tree is from seed or you buyed on a nursery.
Thanks!

[Radoslav]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-GmyTPp0TQ
btw.: My Hassaku is really bitter/sweet- more than grapefruit.

Hello my friend. I have one Hassaku tree with fruits already. Im curious if your tree is from seed or you buyed on a nursery.
Thanks!

Budwood originated from greenhouse of Agricultural university in Prague.
Hassaku is said to be monoembryonic, so no chance to get clone by seeds.

[Luisport]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-GmyTPp0TQ
btw.: My Hassaku is really bitter/sweet- more than grapefruit.

Hello my friend. I have one Hassaku tree with fruits already. Im curious if your tree is from seed or you buyed on a nursery.
Thanks!

Budwood originated from greenhouse of Agricultural university in Prague.
Hassaku is said to be monoembryonic, so no chance to get clone by seeds.

Ok mine is from Quissac.

[70Malibu]

Radoslav, I took some photos of my fruits yesterday after I picked them from my tree. I don't consider it sour. Maybe a little more sour than a Sanbokan and I don't think Sanbokan is sour at all.











Updated my photos with name changed to Natsudaidai. I think it is this variety, brix is too high for the other one.

[Radoslav]

Hello,
when you say, that there is no bitterness, to me it sounds like your tree is not Hassaku, but Hyuganatsu  日向夏.
Also, I see that some of the fruits form neck, It is more typical for Hyuganatsu than Hassaku.

[70Malibu]

Ok, I will cut open some fruits again, then will compare it to the following fruits.
- key lime
- bears lime
- Sanbokan
- Pink lemonaide
- macrophylla

I will take the brix, and rank them by how sour they taste to me.

[nofspeppers]

Ok, I will cut open some fruits again, then will compare it to the following fruits.
- key lime
- bears lime
- Sanbokan
- Pink lemonaide
- macrophylla

I will take the brix, and rank them by how sour they taste to me.

You can get ph strips or even a ph meter if you wanted a more exact measurement of acid

[70Malibu]

No thanks, the brix meter is easy, I can tell how acidic the fruits are.
Ok, after thinking about it, I should buy some strips for tasting acidity in the future, good suggestion.

[nofspeppers]

No thanks, the brix meter is easy, I can tell how acidic the fruits are.
Ok, after thinking about it, I should buy some strips for tasting acidity in the future, good suggestion.

No worries either way. I only suggested because you can get a cheap ph meter for less than $20 and strips are even cheaper. I noticed G(virginia fruit grower) started doing it while he tastes his fruit which inspired me to pull mine out from sitting in storage that I used for hydroponic nutrients.

Thanks for sharing your fruit info

[70Malibu]

Can you buy the ph meter on Amazon?

[nofspeppers]

Can you buy the ph meter on Amazon?

Sorry just now seeing this. Yes there's tons of ph meters on amazon. They range in price from very cheap to expensive. Cheap ones work just fine. I would recommend finding one with a circular tip so you can do the reading in a shot glass and not need as much liquid for a test. The square tip ones are harder to find a small glass to fit into.

[70Malibu]

I did buy one, thanks. I'm now recording all my fruit taste test with brix & ph readings. It is handy for why some with same brix isn't as sweet tasting due to the acid.

[nofspeppers]

I did buy one, thanks. I'm now recording all my fruit taste test with brix & ph readings. It is handy for why some with same brix isn't as sweet tasting due to the acid.

Let us know where to find the videos when you upload them!