Prune d’Ente: best tasting fruit in America?

[mrsg47]

Prunier Ente 707
Airpot 17,5 litres tige 4/6 37.5€ Arbre vigoueux et très productif. C’est la prune d’Agen, pourpre violacée, qui se transforme une fois séchée, en pruneau. Maturité fin août,début septembre avec sa chair jaune, juteuse et très sucrée. Autofertile. Porte greffe = Jaspy/Ferley.

Basically says, the prune 707 is the d’Ente prune. It is a very vigorous and productive tree. It is the prune of Agen, purple-violette, that becomes dry in taste over time and in pruneau (prunes in amangnac) It matures at the end of august beginning of september, with a yellow flesh, very juicy and very sweet. It is self fertizilizing and grafted on Jaspy or Ferley rootstock.40.00

Now there is a typical French oxymoron! These prune plums are grown in the southwest of France where I will live. I will speak with the growers, who when they take their produce to the local markets do not use numbers in the names of fruit. Also there are local nicknames for the same prune plums making them even more confusing to find an honest name!

[jujubemulberry]

both very sweet and delicious and are sweet for eating fresh

french plum prunes are one of my two favored prunus fruits(the other being arctic jay/star).
only trouble with prunes is that have to eat on the sly, lest people ask whether or not am ‘regular’, lol
actually addicted to sunsweet’s prune/plum juices too

[fruitnut]

(the other being arctic jay/star

Ah ha a closet nectarine fan. What you need is a really good Honey Royale and you’d swear off those tropical fruits, lol. Alan says his 26 brix Honey Royale tasted tropical.

[jujubemulberry]

i don’t have to be a closet nectarine fan, and could eat it in public without feeling like am being watched.
its only when i eat a whole box of prunes that people give me devious glances…

i have tried some of the honeys but don’t remember what. Those are good, but jays seem to be better. Of course, this is coming from one whose taste preference include munching on wrinkly prunes instead of fresh plums. The thing about yellow peaches and nectarines is that they are kind of similar to mangoes, and having tried many mangoes in their prime( in the tropics), i end up biased in favor of the tropical mccoy . Some of the unnamed mango varieties are actually superior to the fancy-named mangoes sold here.

[fruitnut]

I also like prunes. The common ones in the store aren’t great but can be good. I don’t buy very much fresh or dried fruit. I’ve got so much dried fruit I made this summer I’m giving a good deal of it away. I can only eat so much.

[BobVance]

Last year I found Honey Royale at Stop and Shop (they often have the name stamped on the box). Most were OK, but a bit bland at ~16 brix. I think one or two of them was in the 20-22 brix range and those were pretty good. I’m sure 26 would be great.

I’m not sure if I like prune plums so much simply because of the high brix (something not often found in the store outside cherries and occasionally nectarines/mangos/lychees).

french plum prunes are one of my two favored prunus fruits

I’ve had them several times and thought that they were very good, but wouldn’t put them on a pedestal. Valor, President, and Empress are just as good and maybe a bit better. And maybe a bit larger too, based on the ones I’ve seen.

Here’s a pic of some President and Empress from earlier this summer:

Plums 2015

I'll third that. Similar to Scott, I had a bit more come through the early frost. But I lost almost everything to bugs and animals. I got about 10 Toka, which held up very well through the frost and the bugs. I got some, at which point the animals saw "their" crop being pick and devoured the rest. I suspect that it was raccoon as well and am attempting to remedy the situation (10 so far in a few weeks). Since I don't have any more from the yard, here is what I'm eating from the farmer…

Some of the unnamed mango varieties are actually superior to the fancy-named mangoes sold here.

This is the first year I’ve sampled a mango I really liked. The (huge) Keitt from Mexico are so tasty that I’ve been giving other mangoes another chance.

[jujubemulberry]

prunes have this rich, complex flavor couldn’t get enough of. And intrigued how that taste could possibly develop from the fresh fruit it came from.

but a bit bland at ~16 brix. I think one or two of them was in the 20-22 brix range and those were pretty good.

as with other fruits, many drupes are of better quality better when home-grown, since could pick them at their prime.

Valor, President, and Empress are just as good and maybe a bit better. And maybe a bit larger too, based on the ones I’ve seen.

may already have tried those, but not sure… will check the labels and boxes next time!

But I lost almost everything to bugs and animals.

here, fruit-eating bugs/animals are sadly not as much a concern for many prunus species as sudden death/short-life syndromes are.
i believe i posted this picture last May in admiration of this tree in our neighborhood, as the size and estimated age indicate a good deal of hardiness

it changed its appearance just a couple of months ago, and one could tell by the leaves it was not because it slipped into early dormancy…

The (huge) Keitt from Mexico are so tasty

with mangoes, the bigger and plumper ones are typically the more mature ones. You could anticipate better quality/bigger mangoes as years go by. Mexican mangoes are getting incredibly cheap and abundant nowadays due to the increase in acreage.
the handling and shipping costs to CT should soon be offset with agreeable price points for both sellers and buyers…

[ross]

A little off topic, but as someone that enjoys prunes should I have a prune plum type? I’m assuming the french varieties mentioned are quite hard to find. Can anyone recommend one for the humid northeast?

[fruitnut]

Can anyone recommend one for the humid northeast?

Alan can if you can get his attention. Maybe his favorites aren’t prune plums but European plums which to me is about the same thing. I believe a true prune is a plum that can be dried with the seed in the fruit.

[SMC_zone6]

Here’s a good thread about that: Valor hits 27%!

[mrsg47]

Ross, I’m in humid RI and I have ‘Green Reine Claude de Bavay’, 'Bavay d’Oullins,
Two Nancy Mirabelle, one Metz mirabelle and one Italian plum prune. The mirabelles take a while to fruit, about six years and Italian prune plum is excellent, the Bavay’s are very slow growers, but the fruits is the sweetest I’ve ever eaten.

[ross]

@mrsg47 @SMC_zone6 @fruitnut

I’m assuming they are MUCH better than the prunes you’d get canned at the grocery store?

[mrsg47]

Yes. The thought of eating a canned plum is scary.

[mamuang]

Mrs. G,
What is the difference taste-wise between Reine Claude de Bavay and Bavay d’ Oullins?

[ross]

Well I’m sold if they do ok with disease!

[mrsg47]

Reine Claude is sweeter. You will have to spray for curcs, borers, scab, black knot, mold of all sorts. They come with a price.

[mamuang]

Last year I got Bavay scionwood from you. The graft took but I don’t know which Bavay it is?

[Bradybb]

I thought of fruitnut when seeing this picture.Did they leave an “e” off the end or is this another fruit,maybe Apricots?
The photo may be from Andy Mariani’s Orchard in Morgan Hill,CA Brady

[Bradybb]

Thanks everyone.A lot of good info here. Brady

[mrsg47]

It is Reine Claude (the really good one!)