No one is going to dispute that fruit is an important part
of a healthy eating plan. But what
happened to the days when the only choices you had to make were from what was
in season and how much money you wanted to spend to have those delicious
looking peaches in February (they usually weren’t as yummy as they looked).
Now we have all kinds of exotic fruit to choose from. Don’t get me wrong I love the idea of trying
new things and new taste sensations. I
don’t even mind spending a couple of dollars on fruit when I have no idea what
it is going to taste like. I mean, who
knew I might enjoy lychee fruit.
Admittedly, I have no idea as to how one goes about eating
some of the fruit I see at the grocers.
Star fruit is still a mystery to me.
But now … now, we have designer fruit to choose from as
well. Yesterday I heard about Grapples
(pronounced ‘grape-l’). They look like
apples, crunch like apples and bruise like apples – but they smell and taste of
– grapes? Yes, a Washington based apple
grower has started producing Concord grape-flavoured apples.
Todd Snyder, the man behind Grapples assures customers that
the unusual fruits contain absolutely no extra sugar or carbs than the fruit
that is picked straight from the tree.
The Grapple is made by soaking Fuji or Gala apples in a mixture of water
and flavouring agents and is NOT genetically modified in any way. The natural and artificial taste of the
grape is something called methyl anthranilate and is used in grape
juices and grape candy. It simply
permeates the apple’s flesh through to the core.
The result … apples that have the distinct flavour of grapes
mixed in.
Now I could get my head around something like that. After all, I do enjoy nectarines which is a
combo fruit albeit one that does grow on trees. I do enjoy mixed fruit juices and Grapples are (sort of) a taste
extension of that. I guess it’s just
difficult to get my head around biting into an apple and tasting a grape?
BUT …
That’s not where this whole thing ends! Oh no … not by a long shot. One can also purchase Cotton Candy
Grapes. David Cain, a fruit geneticist
and a former researcher for the U.S. Department of Agriculture has applied his
talents to “breeding” experimental fruit for profit. His latest invention – the Cotton Candy Grape – supposedly
delivers a flavour similar to the well-known carnival treat when biting into a
grape.
Obviously GMO comes immediately to mind but Mr. Cain assures
consumers that what he doing is actually using cross-breeding techniques that
have been around for centuries, and actually verges on the old-fashioned to
produce the cotton candy grape, pollen from the male plant was brushed onto the
female – an agricultural version of in-vitro fertilization.
Okay – my mother used to use similar techniques on her rose
bushes to achieve interesting colours in the blooms, and as I stated above I do
enjoy nectarines and tangerines – so I get the whole cross pollination
thing. But where does the cotton candy
taste come from. No matter where I
looked, I couldn’t really find a satisfactory answer to that question.
Cain states, “We’re competing against candy bars and cookies
and the competition is fierce. There’s
no denying that the sweet tooth of modern man is obscuring most other available
flavours. And while the Clementine and
the Honeycrisp apple were novel in their day, the problem with sweetness is
that people become habituated to it, and they end up wanting more and more”.
The article I read mentioned the inevitability of someone
producing wine from this grape – tailor made wine that tastes like soda
pop. I don’t know? Zinfandel is pretty sweet for my palette
when it comes to wine. Cotton Candy
wine might not be something I would line up to buy!
OH …
The price point of these products, you ask? Currently the Cotton Candy Grapes sell for
in the neighbourhood of $6 per pound and the Grapples, available in stores
until May sell for around $5 for a four-pack in stores or on-line one can
purchase a gift box of 12 for $26.95 including shipping and handling.
My curiosity is peaked enough that if I see these products
in my supermarket I will spend the money to pick them up … at least once
… just for my personal edification. If
I find them and try them – stay tuned – I’ll share my thoughts in a future blog
post.
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