Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
were planted at that time were not the old varieties, which had a nice tang to offset the
sweetness, but rather what are called "sub-acid" varieties, which never develop much acid-
ity at all. These work much like the so-called sweet onions, which actually don't contain
any more sugar than other onions but taste sweeter because they lack the balancing acid-
ity. To lovers of old-fashioned fruit, these sub-acid varieties tend to taste simple - sort of
like sucking on a sugar cube. But there is significant money beckoning growers toward
sub-acids, and it's hard to resist that incentive. From 1998 to 2002, 30 percent of all nec-
tarines planted and 20 percent of all peaches planted were whitefleshed sub-acid varieties.
Up to now I've been lumping peaches and nectarines together as if they were the same
fruit. What is the difference between a peach and a nectarine? Surprisingly little, botan-
ists say; just one gene does it. In fact, so closely related are the two that sometimes peach
seeds will sprout a sport nectarine tree and vice versa. Technically, peaches are "pubes-
cent," which means that they have hair on the surface. How much hair differs from vari-
ety to variety. Some, such as the longtime favorite Elberta family, are quite hirsute, which
gives them a slightly bitter, almost tannic finish that their fans find a quite appealing con-
trast to all that aromatic, juicy flesh. Nectarines have no fuzz - their skin is completely
smooth, like that of an apple. Although there are a lot of differences among individual
varieties of both fruits, as a general rule nectarines have a slightly more acidic character
with an almost lemony top note, while peaches tend to be muskier and richer in flavor.
Practically speaking, this flavor difference is of interest mainly to connoisseurs, and the
two fruits usually can be used interchangeably.
The biggest challenge with both is finding fruit that is truly well matured. Peaches
and nectarines are climacteric fruits, which means that they continue to ripen after being
picked. You can buy hard peaches at the grocery store, leave them on the counter for a
couple of days and wind up with some pretty killer fruit.
Maturity is another matter entirely. Although peaches and nectarines do soften and be-
come juicier and more aromatic after harvest, they don't get any sweeter. That requires
picking the fruit at the highest possible maturity. And though picking ripe fruit is no prob-
lem - you can smell it several feet away - choosing fruit that has been grown to maturity
is tricky indeed. The best hint is the color of the fruit. This doesn't mean picking the peach
that is the reddest - remember that blush is a genetic variation that has nothing to do with
either ripeness or maturity. Instead, it means paying attention to the quality of the back-
ground color of the fruit. This is more difficult than simply deciding "yellow" or "green."
Peaches and nectarines that have the most sugar and are the most mature have a back-
ground color (yellow) with a golden, almost orange cast. When you see a piece of fruit
like this, pick it no matter what the variety is.
