I don't live anywhere near any place that would have a farmer's market so unfortunately the only berries available are from chain supermarkets. When I was a kid the strawberries were softer, more easily damaged, but tasted a lot better than the berries today. Now the berries are selected for nice color appearance and shelf life, as a result the taste and texture are getting less and less desireable. I thought the Driscoll's were kind of firm and less tasty, but yesterday I bought another variety that has a deeper red color and looks beautiful, I was surprised that it its even firmer than the Driscoll and really firm in the center. I would even say its tending towards rubbery in texture. I don't think I will buy it again. Looks great, durable, taste/texture suffer.
I have a fond memory of picking wild blackberries when I was a kid. Tiny, sour and full of great flavor. Needless to say the store bought blackberries are always disappointing. Full of big seeds, I have to spit out debris that resembles what the birds leave on the hood of my car occasionally.
Whoever is breeding these berries, I hope they still have the other varieties available, it would sure be a shame someday if the only berries around were rubbery fruits with similar characteristics to a wax or plastic fake berry. I hope that people in who work in the food industry will promote more availability and choice, I think it would certainly be worth it to have berries with less shelf life but better texture and flavor.
I have a fond memory of picking wild blackberries when I was a kid. Tiny, sour and full of great flavor. Needless to say the store bought blackberries are always disappointing. Full of big seeds, I have to spit out debris that resembles what the birds leave on the hood of my car occasionally.
Whoever is breeding these berries, I hope they still have the other varieties available, it would sure be a shame someday if the only berries around were rubbery fruits with similar characteristics to a wax or plastic fake berry. I hope that people in who work in the food industry will promote more availability and choice, I think it would certainly be worth it to have berries with less shelf life but better texture and flavor.