johnb51, are you saying a perfectly ripened Cherimoya is indeed the most delicious fruit known to man? Definitely makes me want to try again -- perhaps when spaugh offers them, hopefully I will be able to afford them.
A more complete quote I found on the interwebs reads as follows:
“We had an abundance of mangoes, papaias and bananas here, but the pride of the islands, the most delicious fruit known to men, cherimoya, was not in season. It has a soft pulp, like a pawpaw, and is eaten with a spoon.” (Mark Twain, The Sacramento Daily Union, October 25, 1866, Kilauea, June, 1866.)
I'm guessing the mangos may have been Turpentine? Wonder if a Sugarloaf, Bailey's Marvel, Coconut Cream, or Po Pyu Kalay would have him rethink his assessment?