What are your favorites so far this year?

[Chapinz8]

Wettest year ever. Without raised beds I would have given up. (not really)
In order:
Purple Haze - clear #1, even good after splitting from the rain
KBX - excellent taste, low production
Bear Creek
Big Beef
Indian Stripe - not very productive this year
Stump of the World
Bear Claw - fairly early & productive
Purple Dog Creek- started getting some disease & every tomato ripened at once
Red Brandywine - still hanging in there but taste has gotten too strong
Amazon Chocolate - instead of the large slicer advertised, a cherry with so so taste
Grape - no flavor this year, but just touch a ripe one and it will fall into your hand

I did not include Sungold because Sungold is, well, Sungold. It did appear to start splitting when the rain was about a mile away.

[bower]

On taste ratings alone, the three standouts for me this year are Indian Stripe, Zolotoy Zapas and Eva Purple Ball, for plain fresh eating with really rich and complex flavour.

Zolotye Kupola and Serdtse Dezdemony were my mom's new favourites and were very sweet and beautiful big yellows. Also very sweet were the pinks, Pervaya Lyubov, Rozoviy Flamingo (heart), Yaponskiy Krab, and Petrusha Ogorodnik. I enjoyed them all but find the sweetness of pink and yellow isn't my absolute fave though it is great as an accent for other flavours.

Petrusha Ogorodnik was amazing cooked though - I used it as a pizza topping and it surprised me how much richer it tasted. More cooking experiments are pending....

Black Russian is interesting, I like them best I think when the shoulders are still green, but the ripe fruit has a unique taste too, maybe for a special recipe.

In the 'early reds' Alaska, Kimberley and 'not Sophie's Choice - indeterminate' have been the best fresh eating, out of a dozen tried.

[PaulF]

So far it has been Boondocks, Cowlicks Brandywine, Ambrosia Red (for my wife who likes cherry tomatoes), Polish (Ellis strain), J.D.'s Special C-Tex, Italian Sweet. Still have about 15 not yet ripe enough to eat.

[Father'sDaughter]

(Double post)

[Father'sDaughter]

This year's eating tomato standouts in terms of flavor were Aunt Gertie's Gold, Dester, and dwarf Pink Passion (unreleased).

Close seconds were Virginia Sweet, Zogola, and Liz Birt.

[Redbaron]

Originally Posted by Father'sDaughter

This year's eating tomato standouts in terms of flavor were Aunt Gertie's Gold, Dester, and dwarf Pink Passion (unreleased).

Close seconds were Virginia Sweet, Zogola, and Liz Birt.

I also like Virginia sweets and Dester. VS is productive too. But hard to deny Winns all and Kellogg's breakfast.

[swamper]

sweet treats f1 pink cherry, larger and tastier than sun peach.

sungold, always have a few, though i have so many crosses with sungold genetics growing...

chianti rose, think of a brandywine with increased acidity

druzba, best all around balanced tomato flavor

prudens purple

haleys purple comet, not a high yielder, but still my favorite dark cherry

vilms paste is impressive in the sauce category

[JoAnne]

Not everybody is ripe yet, but so far the standouts that are new to me this year are: Caption Lucky, Kentucky Beefstake, Aunt Ruby's German Green cherry, and a great tasting large pink tomato that was supposed to be Tennessee Spears Green. I've saved seeds from the latter and have dubbed it Large Pink Watermelon.

[SharonRossy]

Too soon for me on all, but aunt Gertie's gold, black from Tula, brandywine Sudduth and bloody butcher have been good. i do not like Black Russian at all, haven't tasted druzba yet or Anna Russian or orange strawberry. Sun sugar cherry has been exceptional. Cuor Di Bue is okay and will end up as sauce.

[Crissyb]

I'm finally getting my bigger tomatoes. Tasted a Big Zebra lasted night and loved it! My new fave for this year, and so pretty. But the taste was what sold me, didn't know I liked green when ripe tomatoes. Will be growing it next year.

[efisakov]

For cherries Black Cherry is outperforms and is delicious, my sons favorite.
Big Rainbow was the sweetest and looked inside and out beautiful. That one really tasted like a fruit.
Best black was Black Master, produced many middle size tomatoes with consistently superb flavor.
Brad's Black Heart is truly amazing, has big size fruits with complex flavor.
Taxi, small yellow fruits with awesome consistent sweet taste. Suitable for container grow.
Purple Dog Creek is the most productive, followed by Marlowe Charleston, Sara Black, Carbon and Black Master. All with great taste.
Old Time Purple is a late season for me, yet has given few over a pound fruits and has more on the vines.
Great old time tasting tomato for me was David's Pink.

[eatmoreyeah]

Russian Persimmion
Grub's Mystery Green
Mazarini
Terhune
German Johnson
Big Cheef
Neves Azorean Red
Rosella Purple

[Sen831]

My old heirlooms that I prospected in Northeastern Pennsylvania often don't do well down here in the much warmer Delmarva Peninsula. Plus growing them in a community garden exposes them to diseases (and sometimes nasty pests) that were not problems in my isolated home garden back north. That said, the champions this year are:

1. McKinley Pink. An old beefsteak variety from Ohio, it was shy to set during the hottest part of the summer but now is covered with good-sized ripening fruits. This is the second time I've grown it here, and it's been the best yielding (though later than I'd like) both times.

Eating one tonight -- just by itself, no dressing or even salt -- reminded me of how distinctive the taste of a real backyard tomato is. While the fruits from roadside stands have been good, their grainy texture is off-putting and makes me wonder if they were picked green and left to ripen in the barn. The McKinleys were firm enough to slice, tender enough to mash on the palate.

2. Riesentraube. A red cherry type with a distinctive point on the bottom and a delicious tart taste. It has always been a solid producer here, though I have noticed it's tendency to set heavily, then collapse when the fruits start to come ripe. This year I've been nursing it through this crisis period, and it seems to have enough young green suckers to replace the older ones that are turning yellow and dying.

[themarta]

Zolotoy Zapas beats all the rest when it comes to taste. I was always a bit disappointed with the taste of orange tomatoes until trying this variety. Very very nice. Will be growing again...and again

The other one is Beaverlodge. It became a staple in my garden couple of years ago, since it's an early and productive tomato. However this year it's also exceptionally great tasting. I didn't remember it being this good...but this year it is.

[Blk_Vegan]

Just now able to begin enjoying vine ripened tomatoes. I was beset with an infestation of squirrels this season that had their way with my tomato garden. One of the standouts for me so far has been Texwine. Compact regular leaf plants...moderate production...medium to large red fruit with superb taste. Nice manageable plants for raised bed SFG.