Who doesn’t love fresh, home-grown tomatoes?
Here are the top-10 tomatoes that most often show up in Best Tasting Tomato polls and contests:
Heirlooms to the throne:
Cherokee Purple – Blackish-red color with a complex, earthy flavor. Very meaty, yet juicy. Plants grow up to 12 feet and are loaded big-sized fruits.
Brandywine – The King of Heirloom Tomatoes, judging by popularity and tasting awards. A pink variety with potato-like leaves. Moderate size for a beefsteak type.
Yellow Brandywine – Brandywine Sudduth Strain is a related yellow-variety that has also been highly rated for taste. If you like a sweeter (or slightly less acidic) tomato, this is one to try.
Mortgage Lifter – Another classic heirloom; monster-size fruit with a tangy taste.
Aunt Ruby’s German Green – “Tangy, but not tart tasting,” says the Organic Gardening Magazine taste-testers. You have to judge ripeness by feel, not color.
Black Krim – This is one I’m eager to try out this year. From the Isle of Krim on the Black Sea in the former Soviet Union. This rare heirloom produces 3-4″ slightly flattened, mahogany-colored beefsteak tomatoes with deep green shoulders. Fantastic, intense, slightly salty taste.
Two particularly tasty hybrids:
Better Boy – If you want loads of consistently shaped 12 – 16 oz. beefsteak type tomatoes loaded with classic tomato flavor, this is your Boy.
Carmello – According to Organic Gardening: “A hybrid with real tomato taste. Also a reliable producer.”
Two cherry tomato champs:
Sun Gold – This small, orange cherry tomato is packed with a delicious fruity tang and is super sweet!
Sweet Million – This cherry tomato produce up to hundreds of sweet, delicious fruits.