Best flavor: Jabuticaba vs, Muscadines

[nighthawk0911@yahoo.com]

I know they are similar, but which wins out for flavor if you could only plant one?

[Galatians522]

I rate them as equal in taste, so I would use another characteristic to make the choice. The following observations are based off of comparing the standard black Jaboticaba and the Ison muscadine (a self fertile variety).

Advantages of jaboticaba include lower maintenance (does not need pruned each winter), longer fruiting season (due to potential for multiple crops), and self fertility (the very best muscadines need a polenator).

Advantages of muscadines include greater cold tollerence (no need to cold protect in 9b EVER), better adaptation to drought once established, firmer texture of fruit pulp, ability to be trained in linear spaces that would otherwise be wasted (like on a fence), greater ease of vegetative propagation, and a shorter time to come into full production.

One last thing that I will mention is that muscadine peels can make my mouth itch when I eat large amounts of fruit. I think this is a very mild allergic reaction and no one else in my family gets it. I have never had that reaction with Jaboticaba.

[TSmith]

I rate them as equal in taste, so I would use another characteristic to make the choice. The following observations are based off of comparing the standard black Jaboticaba and the Ison muscadine (a self fertile variety).

Advantages of jaboticaba include lower maintenance (does not need pruned each winter), longer fruiting season (due to potential for multiple crops), and self fertility (the very best muscadines need a polenator).

Advantages of muscadines include greater cold tollerence (no need to cold protect in 9b EVER), better adaptation to drought once established, firmer texture of fruit pulp, ability to be trained in linear spaces that would otherwise be wasted (like on a fence), greater ease of vegetative propagation, and a shorter time to come into full production.

One last thing that I will mention is that muscadine peels can make my mouth itch when I eat large amounts of fruit. I think this is a very mild allergic reaction and no one else in my family gets it. I have never had that reaction with Jaboticaba.

Wow what a great explanation! I agree totally with it and wanted to add that with Jaboticaba you could have many varieties in a very tiny space, even a cocktail tree that has multiple varieties on it. I love both fruits, but I can eat Jaboticaba all year and I can only have muscadines in August.

I don't see why most people couldn't grow both in a small yard. Muscadines on the fence and Jaboticaba in the flowerbed.

I thought that the peel issue was from the tanins or acidity, which I think if you eat enough Jaboticaba it could cause the same issue. Not sure though.

[Jaboticaba45]

Well, muscadines have less seed space, and you can get loads of fruit from one vine. On the other hand, jaboticabas are cool to grow, don't take much space, and have an interesting look with fruit growing on the trunk. I have tasted some nice muscadines that are bigger than a golf ball. But there are some trash varieties out there also. Like mentioned above, the flavor is basically the same. If you ever decide to go with muscadines, I would reccomend Ison's nursery. Keep in mind that you need multiple plants for pollination if you get a female plant(bigger fruits), vs a self pollinating one(smaller fruits).

[TonyinCC]

Muscadines are much less picky about soil and water.
 Jabos keep dying at my place despite amending soil heavily. I have tasted more muscadines than Jabos but give the muscadines a slight edge so far in flavor. Large dark fruited muscadines are my preference, small ones have too poor a flesh/skin ratio even though I do eat the skin. Muscadines are known to be very rich in resveratrol and antioxidants. I expect Jabos would also be rich in antioxidants but maybe someone else could confirm that.

[CarolinaZone]

In terms of effort; Muscadines win out by a mile. You're re guaranteed the get some fruit from just about any type in about 3 years. The flavor is not at all that similar to me but the look is. The jaboticaba is a really cool looking tree but a muscadine is going to give you much more fruit over time. Back to flavor; comparing them is like apples to oranges in my opinion.

[Triloba Tracker]

One last thing that I will mention is that muscadine peels can make my mouth itch when I eat large amounts of fruit. I think this is a very mild allergic reaction and no one else in my family gets it. I have never had that reaction with Jaboticaba.

Happens to me and my wife too. I think it's pretty common. It's lessened if the fruit is really ripe, it seems. Not sure if it's technically an allergy or just a sensitivity that varies genetically.

[Jaboticaba45]

One last thing that I will mention is that muscadine peels can make my mouth itch when I eat large amounts of fruit. I think this is a very mild allergic reaction and no one else in my family gets it. I have never had that reaction with Jaboticaba.

Happens to me and my wife too. I think it's pretty common. It's lessened if the fruit is really ripe, it seems. Not sure if it's technically an allergy or just a sensitivity that varies genetically.

Now that I think about it, this also happens to me. Only if I eat a lot though. This wouldn't hinder me from eating them though as it doesn't really bother me.

[Future]

When I first had jabo I thought, why not just plant muscadine, seems much easier to get the same experience.  And the burn, yes that happens too.

[W.]

One last thing that I will mention is that muscadine peels can make my mouth itch when I eat large amounts of fruit. I think this is a very mild allergic reaction and no one else in my family gets it. I have never had that reaction with Jaboticaba.

Happens to me and my wife too. I think it's pretty common. It's lessened if the fruit is really ripe, it seems. Not sure if it's technically an allergy or just a sensitivity that varies genetically.

Now that I think about it, this also happens to me. Only if I eat a lot though. This wouldn't hinder me from eating them though as it doesn't really bother me.

The itch/burn which people have described is due to the tannins and acids in muscadine skin. Of course, those chemicals are why muscadines are so intensively studied for potential health benefits. I find that I only have a mild reaction to the skins when they are not perfectly ripe and only if I eat a substantial quality. To me, it is a similar effect as I get from eating too much citrus, particularly kumquats and other sour citrus. At least you can eat muscadine skin, unlike jaboticaba skin (for the most part), which is a point in favor of the muscadine.

What jaboticaba has going in its favor is that you can sell a seedling of a rare variety for hundreds of dollars, and newer and more expensive varieties are being imported all the time. If muscadines had that same sort or rarity, exclusivity, and collectability; I believe you would see the same number of muscadine posts on this forum as jaboticaba posts.