It's too dark out and cold (60's) so I can't check the names on my plants but we do have some good flavor ones (if you're looking at it from a home grower's view) I will post the names tomorrow.

I watched a Dave Wilson video with Ed Laivo sampling a number of Blueberries at his home in Modesto,CA and he said Reveille was said one of his favorites,I'd like to get a few if possible.Brady

Blueberries are a major crop in Michigan. And every commercially grown one I've ever had has been large, sweet, and flavorless. They over-fertilize and over-irrigate the bushes, and this has the same effect on blueberries as it does on tomatoes and many other crops - big, attractive fruit with no flavor.

Its a wonder to me that people eat this stuff and like it. Truthfully most people don't know what the real stuff tastes like.

The problem is that the varieties that get spread widely and become popular are the varieties that the commercial growers use. Reveille is one of the less attractive berries due to light color, smaller size and the fact that even when ripe they sometimes retain some green and red near the scar which makes them look unripe. Sadly flavor tends to rank down the list of priorities.

I think size is very important. I know when I buy them, I look for big berries. They should have included Chandler.

Frank:

Big fruit is often a signpost for poor eating quality. I find that true in pluot and nectarine, the main crops where I'm sure that a long term water deficit can improve brix and eating quality. I've fiddled with growing blueberries at a water deficit but they're not very drought tolerant and it's hard to regulate in a pot.

Of course some cultivars have bigger fruit and may also have good quality. My Chandler died before it fruited.

Chandler is okay,I like Darrow more.Brady

I attended a presentation by one of the blueberry experts at Parlier a few years ago. The varieties in the study you linked were not the only ones under evaluation there. I think I remember his specifically mentioning "Blue Moon" for high flavor. Don't remember which variety he said was sweetest, but as I recall, sweetness was not his highest priority for personal preference. If I can find my notes, I'll fill you in.

Carolyn:

The two years I attended the blueberry field day and tasting there were something like 20 some varieties as I remember. Not only did we have a tasting where the varieties were rated, we also got to taste the fruit in the field. My impression both years was that the differences between varieties in terms of eating quality was rather small.

I'd hope the consumer would be able to decide which they liked best. But we know that's not exactly how it works. Yield is very important to the grower because they get paid by the pound. I'm hoping Sweetcrisp will continue to impress despite it's modest yield. Maybe it can have a future as a premium product that commands a premium price.

Blueberry breeding seems faster than most fruits. New varieties arrive quickly so any info from a ways back is mostly outdated. Many of the varieties they spoke highly of in 2002-03 are long gone. Fall Creek Nursery, a major supplier to commercial CA growers and co-host of those field days, has a rapid turnover. Most of their current lineup of southern highbush has been added in the last 8 years.

Perhaps Southmoon is the variety you are thinking of. I've never heard of Bluemoon.

Commercially produced berries will never be great tasting for the simple fact that flavor develops after sweetness. When the berries are full size and colored right the clock toward spoilage starts and the growers want them off the plants and headed to store shelves. If you let the berries hang on the plant a full week after they look ripe the berries are not only sweet but develop more BB flavor. It is a reason why taste tests can be somewhat misleading.

An exception would be Sunshine blue which takes a couple weeks after it turns ripe looking to turn sweet and for the flavor to develop.

but what role does weather play in flavor? Around here O'neal tastes wonderful on hot dry years (which seem to be the pattern for now) whereas all the others weaken during intense summers.

I had always been told that most of the flavor is in the skin so the larger berries don't offer as much of a punch compared to a handful of small berries.

Just throwing in my very small 2 cents, but with all my blueberries, Sunshine, O'Neal, Misty, Emerald, Jubilee and SweetCrisp (SweetCrisp were too young to produce last season), surpringly, the Emerald, which produced up to quarter-sized blueberries (and the plant was equally as vigorous), were really delicious. So were Sunshine, which I expected to be the least tasty of all my varieties. Now, this was just my first year, but the Emerald really surprised me. I actually only bought Emerald to be a cross-pollenizer for SweetCrisp, so that was a bonus. Will have to see how things go this season. Lots of blooms so far. All in pots, and no additional acidifying done through winter. Seems they have sort of acclimated to a more alkaline soil than probably they prefer, but so far, so good. And awfully great to be able to have fresh blueberries for breakfast that actually taste like blueberries!

Patty S.