Sweetest Strawberries found

[Jaxom]

I have found the solution to Elsanta.
Some of you may remember my mentioning a spring visit to Paris and the market stalls being awash with the most fantastic smelling and tasting strawberries? Well I have found out what thet are.....
'Gariguette' and 'Mara des Bois' Both can be bought fron Ken Muir. Of the Gariguette Ken muir says

it dates back to the 1930s and is considered to be the French equivalent to Royal Sovereign on account of its pleasing fragrance and sugar-sweet flavour. The elongated fruits are a brilliant vermilion-red. The flesh is delicate, soft and particularly juicy ... totally mouthwatering and with sugar and cream added it is at its most delectable. Gariguette is grown commercially in Provence and brightens up the local market stalls during the early summer.The fruits are not firm enough for the U.K. supermarkets but they are sold fresh in punnets at Harrods, Knightsbridge, when in season. Flavour: Excellent.

'Mara des Bois' Exclusive to Ken Muir, this variety combines the flavour of the woodland strawberry with the size of English summer varieties. When fully ripe the fruit colour is intensely red. Resistant to powdery mildew. Crops well. Flavour: Excellent (and aromatic).

I have placed my order and now just hope I don't get shoot for spending more money

[Lesley Jay]

You just can't beat lovely ripe home grown strawberries - Oh I can't wait!!

[andrewo]

With home grown cream?

[Nicos]

Just put my order in for Gariguette strawberries - it's got some amazing write-ups! .Thanks for the suggestion Jax. Was very pleased to see 'Grow your own' was on their list of where you heard about the ken muir site too. Getting famous!

[smallblueplanet]

I haven't bought strawberries for years, they just don't taste the same - crunchy and tart is not my idea of a strawberry taste!

Do these French ones taste like strawberries used to?

[Nicos]

They are said to be tender, juicy,small and soft and very sweet with a reddish/orange colour and a flavour reminiscent of wild strawberries! Available in April from Harrods and Waitrose apparently or from Ken Muir if you wish to grow your own!(on offer as I speak -or type!) . Would never have heard of them had it not been for Jax!

[Jaxom]

I've been trying to hunt down real Strawberries for about two years since going to Paris one spring and being entranced by the scent of strawberries wafting on the air and spotting the open air market stalls piled up with ripe red fruit.
Here in the UK I gave up buying strawberries years ago. It turns out our UK strawberries are chosen not for their taste but for their ability to be dropped with out bruising and having a long shelf life in order to transport then by Planes Trains and Road.
I will report back later in the year on how the strawberries taste.
Jax

[smallblueplanet]

Thanks Nicos & Jax - if I see them in Waitrose I might try them too!

[fruit&vegvirgin]

getting worried now, I got Cambridge Scarlet in homebase for 99p each. they've still got to taste better than supermarket ones havent they?

[WiZeR]

With home grown cream?

and home grown champagne?

[smallblueplanet]

Interestingly Gariguette isn't very old

link

"Some of the remarkable varieties which have resulted from INRA research include:
.....
the very sweet-smelling and productive Gariguette strawberry (1977) "

google suggests - "Gariguette strawberries, cross between Belrubi and Favette varieties in 1976, very flavoursome"

[smallblueplanet]

La fraise
Vous trouverez sur le marché différentes variétés de fraises :

La gariguette : petite nouvelle à la forme allongée, d’un rouge groseille brillant. Ferme, bien juteuse et très légèrement acidulée .
La favette : en forme de coeur à chair fondante et au parfum voluptueux .
La gorella : un beau rouge cardinal pour ce fruit de forme conique, à chair peu parfumée .
L’elsanta : un beau rouge passion pour une pulpe charnue et parfumée. Le fruit est en forme de coeur.
La belrubi : bien ferme et d’un pourpre foncé.
La surprise des halles : une petite fraise ronde, rouge foncé acidulée et subtilement parfumée.
La sans rivale : un rouge vif et brillant pour une rondelette au nez pointu, très parfumée et sucrée.

link

google translation

You will find on the market various varieties of cutters:

The gariguette : small news with the lengthened form, of a brilliant red currant. Firm, quite juicy and very slightly acidulous.
The favette : in the shape of heart with melting flesh and the voluptuous perfume.
The gorella : a beautiful cardinal red for this fruit of conical form, with little scented flesh.
The elsanta : a beautiful red passion for a pulp charnue and scented. The fruit is in the shape of heart.
The belrubi : quite firm and of a dark crimson.
The surprise of the markets : a small round cutter, dark red acidulated and subtly scented.
Without rival : a red sharp and shining for a rondelette with the pointed nose, very scented and sweetened.

Favette sounds interesting too.

[Nicos]

oh why does French always sound so 'inviting' when badly translated???!

[smallblueplanet]

LOL - dunno but it does!

[Jaxom]

Allo Allo, Zis is Jax. I vil only say zis once. ze elsanta look like a beautiful Voman but tastes like verm tasteless cardbord. I hav ze bum and vould blow zem up if I could.