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Old August 1, 2017   #61
ddsack
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I have to revise my opinion upwards on Esterina F1 from my original post. I still don't think it's flavor is as interesting as Sungold F1, but it is definitely worth growing if you like very sweet cherries, or for kids who don't like tomatoes.

One of these years, I will grow Goldkrone again, alongside Esterina F1, as I remember Goldkrone being very similar in sweetness. Someone I gave some Goldkrone to said it reminded her of grapes.
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Old August 1, 2017   #62
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I am growing 2 Sungolds right beside 2 Esterina. (Also have 2 Sungolds and 2 Sunsugar that were planted much earlier that I have been eating off for some time. Sungold produced first ripe before Sunsugar and tastes better in my garden)Sungold is also at least 2 weeks earlier producing ripe fruit in my garden than Esterina. Still waiting for first ripe Esterina to compare taste. Sungold set fruit earlier but Esterina seems to be catching up on fruit set. Both varieties are about 8 feet tall at this time.

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Old August 1, 2017   #63
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Esterina has been slow to get vigorous for me. I have it next to Galina's, and it's still only about half the size of that plant.

Early fruits were disappointingly mild. Later fruits are still mild, but somewhat more flavorful.

It's not exactly a favorite for flavor, but it does have one of the best textures of any cherry tomato I've ever eaten, at the same time tender and thin-skinned yet meaty while still being juicy.

It doesn't crack, and it holds well. So it definitely has its positives, even if the flavor is not stunning. And people who like mild tomatoes would probably really enjoy it.
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Old August 1, 2017   #64
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I'm having GoldKrone and Esterina F1 next to each other. Both still have very small fruits. Interesting to see how they will fare in this (generally bad) season: apart from a few warm days, it's been a cool summer.
If I recall correctly, GoldKrone was very sweet (some years back).. WIll try SUnGold F1 next year: I like it, but am not wildly in love with it ..
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Old August 2, 2017   #65
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Narnian, I will be very interested in your taste tests comparing the two! Hope you luck into a warmer spell so your tomatoes can ripen up and develop some good flavor!
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Old August 2, 2017   #66
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When I had to yank out a Big Rainbow due to disease, I grabbed a hybrid plant from my local greenhouse as an impulse buy. It is Chocolate Sprinkles- and I really like it. The skin was/is a bit thick- but it isn't tough. The fruit is sweet but meaty and has a much richer, full flavor than previous cherries I have tried. it is producing like crazy and not showing any signs of slowing down.
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Old August 2, 2017   #67
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gorbelly View Post
Esterina has been slow to get vigorous for me. I have it next to Galina's, and it's still only about half the size of that plant.

Early fruits were disappointingly mild. Later fruits are still mild, but somewhat more flavorful.

It's not exactly a favorite for flavor, but it does have one of the best textures of any cherry tomato I've ever eaten, at the same time tender and thin-skinned yet meaty while still being juicy.

It doesn't crack, and it holds well. So it definitely has its positives, even if the flavor is not stunning. And people who like mild tomatoes would probably really enjoy it.
My Esterina plants have been very vigorous, both growing tall and branching out. It also fruits like multiflora. Like Sungold, esterina is fruiting non stop. Those two are the main varieties that I am brewing some wine with. I should get some gold/orange color wine.
That is the main use that I could find for small cherries. I don't eat raw tomato that much.
Sungold does taste much sweeter but Esterina is meatier and has a nice after taste that lingers on. Another advantage of Esterina ove SG is that it is much less prone to cracking, unless you just neglect them.
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Old August 3, 2017   #68
gorbelly
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Originally Posted by Gardeneer View Post
My Esterina plants have been very vigorous, both growing tall and branching out. It also fruits like multiflora. Like Sungold, esterina is fruiting non stop. Those two are the main varieties that I am brewing some wine with. I should get some gold/orange color wine.
That is the main use that I could find for small cherries. I don't eat raw tomato that much.
Sungold does taste much sweeter but Esterina is meatier and has a nice after taste that lingers on. Another advantage of Esterina ove SG is that it is much less prone to cracking, unless you just neglect them.
Gardeneer, you're growing saved F2 seeds, correct? They may have some wild gene vigor that mine does not, as I'm growing the F1.

The flavor continues to improve for me, though, as the plant gets larger.
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Old August 3, 2017   #69
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Last year I grew Gardeners Sweetheart and loved it- this year it has been outdone by Rapunzel--what a wonderful taste- the sweetness explodes in your mouth, and it makes tons of fruit.
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Old August 15, 2017   #70
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I also have to slightly revise my ideas about Esterina. For me, they are super-producers, and the flavor has definitely improved from earlier in the season. I think part of that change in flavor is the dry spell we have been having. I had to water my plants last week. My own little flavor "trick" is that I slice an Esterina and Chocolate Cherry in half and eat the two halves at once. Sweet and tangy. In fact, it's impressively tasty! I do like the chewy texture of both -- much like a grape tomato. Last, and maybe best, no signs of Septoria (yet) on Esterina. A very little on the Chocolate Cherry. I did spray the plants early twice with copper soap. -GG
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Old January 14, 2018   #71
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Originally Posted by MarlynnMarcks View Post
The sweet taste of Sweet 100 is my favorite of any tomato, BUT it cracks like mad, especially toward the end of the season. Can anyone recommend another cherry that tastes similar to Sweet 100?
Nectar over Sweet 100. Sweeter, bigger, and produced until the end.
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Old January 15, 2018   #72
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I'm not a fan of sweet tomatoes. I like all my tomatoes to have an acidic flavor. My only cherry tomato this year will be Cherry Falls. I'm growing twelve plants of Cherry Falls this year. The plants retain a low stature and cascade over the edges of large pots with a larger variety planted in the center of the pot. I plant four Cherry Falls in each pot. The plants are covered early with blossoms and through the summer with tomatoes. Because they bloom and set early, I don't have to worry about cross pollination with the larger varieties in the same pot.
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Old January 15, 2018   #73
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Originally Posted by DonDuck View Post
I'm not a fan of sweet tomatoes. I like all my tomatoes to have an acidic flavor. My only cherry tomato this year will be Cherry Falls. I'm growing twelve plants of Cherry Falls this year. The plants retain a low stature and cascade over the edges of large pots with a larger variety planted in the center of the pot. I plant four Cherry Falls in each pot. The plants are covered early with blossoms and through the summer with tomatoes. Because they bloom and set early, I don't have to worry about cross pollination with the larger varieties in the same pot.
well, I think you need to pass on the cherry falls. the picture is a joke. it doesn't grow like this. I think that is photo shopped. I can not get it to look anything like that picture. nor is a tart tangy taste. I remember it being boring. I have seeds if you haven't ordered them yet. I will be happy to send them to you.
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Old January 15, 2018   #74
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Never grew Cherry Falls but spring of 2017 grew Lizzano and it is short, wide and loaded with tomatoes. I grew 2 plants each in their own 5 gallon RootPouch. I thought it tasted great. This fall grew it again in an EB and it is the same, short, wide and loaded. I just don't think it tastes all that great.

So is the taste compromised b/c of the
1: season (going into cool/cold weather)
2. grown in an EarthBox instead of RootPouch (doubtful)
3. growing SunPeach which tastes amazing so it just doesn't compare.
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Old January 15, 2018   #75
DonDuck
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Originally Posted by clkeiper View Post
well, I think you need to pass on the cherry falls. the picture is a joke. it doesn't grow like this. I think that is photo shopped. I can not get it to look anything like that picture. nor is a tart tangy taste. I remember it being boring. I have seeds if you haven't ordered them yet. I will be happy to send them to you.
I grow every year from saved seed, but thanks. Your right the plant looks nothing like the photos on the web. The first year I grew it, I thought I must have received the wrong seed from someone because they were growing straight and tall. I was thinking of pulling them out, but then they bloomed similar to a multi flora. They were a solid mass of blossoms. I left them planted to see what developed. As they became heavy with tomatoes, the plants bent over and started looking like the photos.

Taste is subjective with so many variables. In my garden, the tomatoes don't ripen until we start receiving some high heat. They then ripen in stages through most of the summer. The flavor seems to develop with the heat with the later summer tomatoes tasting more intense than the early summer tomatoes.
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