What's the verdict on Honeyberries...are they tasty?

Beauty is a nice sized chunk of a berry…but it hangs a long time looking as if it is ripe and it is not…let it be. Blizzard is the best off the bush berry I have had…a huge flattened diamond shape with rounded corners if that makes any sense… Boreal Beast is also nice off the bush…but a little harder to grow and to get going than some of the others. Another favorite of mine is Indigo Gem…though it is small in size it has, like the others I mentioned a more approachable flavour. I have probably 300 plants and at least 15 varieties. Wojtec deserves more notice than it gets…although it is a spreading droopy untidy mess of a plant , it is vigorous, highly productive and if left to ripen has a nice flavour. Berry Blue and Honeybee are among some of the “pollinators”…they have poor flavour and it really isn’t necessary to use these as there are always other, better tasting fruit that you can find to pollinate your favorite varieties…just have to hunt around. Haskaps , like other fruit, but to a much greater degree have such a range of esters that contribute to varying flavours from plum to apple to strawberry to tea leaf…at least these are the flavours I detect most in them…yes the taste does sometimes hint at raspberries…but raspberries have a distinct flavour that I have not found is common or prominent in haskaps…however apple and strawberry notes do come out…apple more so when fresh…strawberry when haskaps are made into jam. Which brings me to another point. If you are making jam (highly recommended but be sure to use pectin without added acidifying agents…the berries are tart enough they definitely don’t need acidifiers to bring out flavour),don’t worry too much about what varieties you have…ones that are not very appealing from the bush lend their own to the mix…(mix the varieties all together) in jam. Those who say they taste like blueberry I think are tasting with their eyes…blueberries have a , though subtle, very distinct flavour that I don’t find at all in haskaps. …apple yes, plum yes, …strawberry , tea leaf and other vague fruity essences. Though I have not tried it, I am certain they would also make a good wine.

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