Grapefruit, May 28th, 2008

Brand: Texas Sweet (Healds Valley Farms)
Growth location: Texas
Bought in: Food Lion


Sorry, I did not snap a picture of this one before consuming it.

The bag's fifth and final grapefruit had little going for it, but not too much going against it. It did a passable job of being sweet and sour. Except to note what wasn't wrong with it, a pastime not worth exploring, I can't say much in favor of this grapefruit.

One slice was partially overtaken by that wretched firmness I've discussed before, but this time, only a single bite of fruit was such a loss. A slight sourness that did not seem to be the pleasant, citric acid type permeated throughout. The skin of each slice almost never stayed together when pulling a slice away, but it did not get too messy in the process of eating.

These various issues did not add up to a seriously unpleasant grapefruit, however, just a generally disappointing one.

Rating: D+


In summary, I can't really say good things about Healds Valley Farms this time of year. They gave me one great grapefruit out of five, but that seems to be a pretty reasonable ratio these days. I'll look elsewhere for my grapefruits when I go shopping this evening.

Grapefruit, May 26th, 2008

Brand: Texas Sweet (Healds Valley Farms)
Growth location: Texas
Bought in: Food Lion

File this one under "plain grapefruit." Nothing noteworthy came to me in this grapefruit, just a general citrus flavor and no real problems. It had an average quantity of seeds, did not taste of unpalatable earthiness, and held together reasonably well.

If a grapefruit is going to land somewhere between "good" and "bad," I would at least hope for something intense in its flavor, but no, this one was balanced in sweetness and tart, with both flavors mellow. A great grapefruit should be both intensely sweet and intensely tart; this was as average as they come.

Grade: C

Grapefruit, May 22th, 2008

Brand: Texas Sweet (Healds Valley Farms)
Growth location: Texas
Bought in: Food Lion

I spoke too soon about the Red Star variety-- The bag has delivered me a great grapefruit. Tender, juicy, sweet, and tart all at once, the fruit provided a beautiful experience. But not every die-hard hater would be converted. Lesser slices made up perhaps 1/5th of the grapefruit. These slices did not taste bad; they were acceptable, above-average slices, but lacking the harmonious combination of the above traits. The rest of this fruit, however, was all I could ask for.

Rating: A-

Grapefruit, May 20th, 2008

Brand: Texas Sweet (Healds Valley Farms)
Growth location: Texas
Bought in: Food Lion

This bag is not going well. While the first grapefruit was tasty, the second proved displeasing. Some slices were bland, some hard and chunky, and, most damningly, one was so strangely firm that I was scared away from eating the whole slice. However, I enjoyed some of the slices. They were, like the previous fruit from this bag, sweet and juicy, though lacking any real zest or joy.

There is no life in these grapefruits, but they are better than last week's fruit. I wonder if Texas's obsession with the reddest fruit possible has bred out any real greatness from the Red Star type.

Rating: C-

Grapefruit, May 18th, 2008

Brand: Texas Sweet (Healds Valley Farms)
Growth location: Texas
Bought in: Food Lion

I dared to buy a bag of grapefruit. It should be a terrible idea because choice basically goes out the window, but having choice hasn't served me well lately-- My grapefruits have, lately, been poor. Since none of the fruit in this particular bag looked bad, I went ahead with it.

And, surprisingly, it was not a failure! Well, at least not a complete failure. The first grapefruit from the bag was sweet and juicy. Nothing amazing, but nothing terrible either. A nice, moderate grapefruit. The rest of the bag, well...we shall see.

Rating: B-

Grapefruit, May 16, 2008

Brand: Red Star
Growth location: Texas
Bought in: Food Lion

Another day brings another sub par grapefruit from Red Star. Much like the last, this one failed to hold together in slices when pulled apart, but at least it had an OK flavor to it. The fruit was on the sweet side, but the flavor was, overall, a bit muted. A slight earthiness was occasionally discernible. The inexplicable oiliness and awful odor of yesterday's experience were thankfully not present. It could have been much worse, but I've had much better grapefruits.

This has been a disappointing two days, following the wonderful Trader Joe's organic one I ate on Wednesday. Maybe it's time to give Red Star a rest.

Rating: C

Grapefruit, May 15th, 2008

Brand: Red Star
Growth location: Texas
Bought in: Food Lion

Unpeeling this grapefruit brought out the unpleasant and sharp odor of the juice in the peel. The texture of the juice on my hand was unlike any grapefruit I'd previously experienced. Between my fingers it felt oily and did not leave any residue upon drying--most unusual. This was a sign of things to come.
The fruit, which failed to hold together in slices when I pulled it apart, had barely any taste. A few slices had an occasional hint of earthiness, which is good for whiskey, not for grapefruits. All this is a pity; Red Star usually delivers quality grapefruits. At least it wasn't full of seeds.

Rating: D.

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