Today I picked one of the ripe fruits from my chinotto tree. I never tasted chinotto before so I was very curious.

The scent of the peel reminded me most of a mandarin. The peel easily came off.
The taste of the fruit was a mix of bitter and sweet. I actually liked the taste, it was different from all other citrus I ever tasted before.

What I did not like was that the fruit was very dry, there was no juice at all! Is this normal for a chinotto fruit? Or has this plant maybe suffered from a water shortage at the nursery? (the fruit was already on the plant when I got it...)

Marc, I used to have a Chinotto, but I tossed it onto the compost pile, as I did not like the taste of the fruit. Chinotto is basically a sour orange. It is more bitter then "sweet". Most people do not grow Chinotto for the fruit, but rather for the decorative foliage of the small and tight leaf structure. However, the one I had did not produce dry fruit. - Millet (372 ABO-)

I didn't buy it because of the fruit either but rather because I liked the plant. But as a citrus addict one has to taste the fruit also!
The bitter taste reminded me of the taste of the skin of the parts of a grapefruit (I hope you understand what I mean, I don't know the english name of it ).
I also seem to recognise the bitter taste of some drinks, like Campari, that I believe are made of chinotto...

If you say the fruit normally isn't dry, I hope I can have better fruit in the future!

Here you have some products made from chinotto fruits in Italy. :

http://chinottodisavona.it/prodotti.html

I love the Chinotto soft drink. It has a trace of bitterness that gives it a kick. Unfortunately it isn't sold in NZ and I have to wait until I'm overseas to get it.

MarcV,
All of the Chinotto fruit that I have tasted were very juicy. The taste of mine is hard to tell the difference between it and a mandarin. Give it another year.
Terry

Mine are not dry, but have quite a sour after taste.

Thanks for all the info!

Looks like all chinottos have a different taste!