http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-marketwatch-20120210,0,4339226.story

Market Watch: Prized Dekopons arriving

By David Karp Special to the Los Angeles Times
February 10, 2012


Dekopon (David Karp / January 28, 2011)

The Dekopon, a Japanese hybrid of mandarin and orange reputed to be the most delicious citrus in the world, created a sensation last year when California-grown fruit showed up at local groceries under the marketing name Sumo, after a dozen years of secrecy and intrigue. The new crop has started arriving at stores and will be available at the Santa Monica farmers market starting next Wednesday from the Dekopon kingpin himself, Mike George of Lindsay, who grows 16 acres of the variety and organized the group that secured the rights to it.

Large, very easy to peel and seedless, with a distinctive bump at the top, the Dekopon has gossamer-thin membranes enclosing its segments and flesh that feels firm at first bite but then melts in the mouth. The pulp has a perfect balance of sweetness and acidity, and an intense, lingering flavor of Ponkan mandarin, much beloved in Asia and most familiar to Westerners from canned mandarin oranges.

The Dekopons sold at farmers markets by George and his wife, Jonelle, will differ from store-bought fruit because they will be field run, in varying sizes, unwaxed and without stickers. Fruit shipped around the country has to be packed in a commercial facility, but post-harvest scientists have recently verified what farmers have known for decades: that citrus tastes better when it enters a packinghouse than when it exits. Jostling, washing, waxing, heating and time off the tree take their toll. Delicate, thin-skinned mandarins are especially susceptible, so buying Dekopons fresh from the tree at the farmers market definitely has its advantages.

In March, as the Georges are finishing their harvest, John and Cindy France of Richgrove will start bringing their own certified organic Dekopons, which have not been sold before in the United States, to the Santa Monica market.

The prized variety has already started to show up at stores in Southern California, and by this weekend it should be at Bristol Farms, Gelson's, Grow (in Manhattan Beach) and Whole Foods; it will also be available at Asian specialty stores such as Assi Super, Galleria/HK, Greenland, Koreatown Plaza, Marukai, Mitsuwa and Nijiya.

Rival for mandarin title

For the next several weeks, aficionados of fine local citrus will have a chance to try the Dekopon's rival for the title of best-flavored mandarin, Daisy, grown by Louis Diaz of Ranch Mexico Lindo in Valley Center, at the Beverly Hills farmers market. A cross of Fortune and Fremont, but with richer, more complex flavor than either of its parents, Daisy was bred in the California desert and named after Daisy Young, wife of legendary citrus nurseryman Dolan Young.

It's got gorgeously deep orange, smooth skin, so for appearance and flavor it's hard to beat, but it has some significant flaws: It is so seedy you practically need a hacksaw to cut it horizontally; its rind is fairly thin but only moderately easy to peel, and this becomes more difficult after refrigeration; and its acidity drops off within a week or so after harvest (not ideal for long-distance shipment).

The seediness, by far the most substantial of these drawbacks, is overcome in DaisySL, a low-seeded mutation of Daisy released in 2009 by UC Riverside. Without the seeds to muck up its mouth-feel, the variety's excellent texture is unmasked, with flesh that's firm at first bite but melts in the mouth, tender and rag-free.

It takes time for nurseries to propagate trees, for farmers to plant them and for the trees to grow and bear crops, so fruit of the seedless form of this superb variety is not yet available to consumers. The DaisySL's commercial potential won't be clear until it has been planted in production orchards, but it seems likely that it will be the standard of quality for mandarins at farmers markets and in home gardens in years to come.

Beverly Hills market move

This autumn, Diaz and almost two-thirds of the vendors at the Beverly Hills farmers market will have to move around the corner from their current location, says Greta Dunlap, manager of the market, which is run by the Beverly Hills Recreation and Parks Division.

Currently the market is on Civic Center Drive, parallel to and just south of Santa Monica Boulevard. United Talent Agency, which will be moving its headquarters in August to 9336 and 9346 Civic Center Drive, roughly in the middle of the market, has asked the city of Beverly Hills to ensure that it will have access to its driveway on Sunday mornings, says Dunlap.

"We have hundreds of employees engaged in the representation of our many clients, and a great number of our colleagues need access to their offices throughout the evening and weekend hours," said Chris Day, a spokesman for UTA. "We also will be using our complex to entertain clients and to hold film screenings, which during the busy awards season can occur literally around the clock."

As a result, Dunlap will have to move about 40 of the market's 67 vendors, those who are east of UTA's driveway, to another stretch of Civic Center Drive, adjacent to the western edge of the market that runs perpendicular to Santa Monica Boulevard. The market can still use the space for 27 vendors west of the UTA driveway.

The market will lose about 130 of its 650 feet in length, says Dunlap. Just as important, the new location is narrower than the current one, so to keep a central passageway that complies with fire department regulations, the relocated vendors will have to offload their produce and equipment, and then park their vehicles elsewhere.

To be successful, farmers markets rely on a delicate tissue of many factors, including habit, convenience, parking and visibility, and it remains to be seen just what the effect of this partial move will be. The Westwood farmers market never recovered after it was forced to move from its location on Weyburn Avenue, but the Beverly Hills market flourished after it shifted, in 2004, from Canon Drive to its current location.

Meanwhile, farmers are pondering what the effects of the move will be.

"If I have to move and offload my truck, I won't be too happy about it" said Diaz. "But I'll do what I have to do."

Variety sounds very interesting. Would love to hear from anyone that has tasted or can aquire budwood/seeds.

I've eaten Dekopon. I would rate them good tasting, not great, but certainly good eating. Not to take anything away from Dekopon, still I think Xie Shan is much better . - Millet 344 ABo-)

A Dekopon from the tree tastes 150% better than from the store. I don't really think they keep and ship well, personally, but I'm going to try again, this year and see if they taste the same as they did last year now that I have a comparison between fresh from the tree vs from the market. Also, Suntreat is shipping Dekopons to some Safeways this year as well. I'm going to check my local Safeway, which is rather small, and also in a couple of larger Safeways. Wish they had considered selling to some of the other organic markets like Sprouts, Henry's or Trader Joe's. No Whole Foods near me, and all the Asian markets are a good hour + from me as well. Curious to see how they taste this year.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/22/dining/the-sumo-orange-is-a-cross-between-the-mandarin-and-a-california-navel-orange.html?_r=1

There’s No Wrestling With This Sumo


By FLORENCE FABRICANT
Published: February 21, 2012

Sumo is a name that fits this new orange because of its size (it is one of the largest mandarins) and its distinctive topknot, like a sumo wrestler’s. But wrestling is not an issue with the Sumo orange because its bumpy skin is so easy to peel. A cross between the mandarin and a California navel orange, it took 30 years to develop in Japan, where it is called Dekopon and highly prized; at a half-pound to a pound, a single fruit sells there for as much as $8. Last year Sumos were first grown in California and sold mainly on the West Coast, but now they are available in the New York area. The easily segmented oranges are sweet, with good texture and no seeds.

Sumo Citrus are sold at Whole Foods for $2.99 a pound; Gourmet Garage, $3.99 a pound; Eataly, $5 a pound; and baldorfood.com, $20 for seven, plus shipping. They will be available through March.

After sampling two, I have to agree with Millet, they are certainly good tasting but there are better flavored varieties (Page comes to mind for me). They do peel very easily and have low pith and the large size is unique. The marketing for this variety, might be superior to the actual product in this case. However I would certainly like to acquire this variety if it becomes available, a very good variety overall.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/02/24/FD1U1NAHDC.DTL

Sumo: A big new player in citrus

Lisa Appleton,Lynne Char Bennett
Sunday, February 26, 2012


The newly available Sumo is a Japanese hybrid of mandarin, Satsuma and navel oranges.
Photo: Craig Lee / Special to The Chronicle

A new, extra-large citrus variety, the Sumo mandarin, has a distinctive top knot and weighs in at about 10 ounces each, making it the largest seedless mandarin in the United States and well-deserving of its moniker.

This easy-to-peel tangerine family hybrid - one-half mandarin orange and one-quarter each Satsuma and navel - was originally developed in the 1970s in Japan, where it is called Dekopon and is said to sell for as much as $10 per fruit. The Sumo is sweeter than the average citrus and has an intense tartness, which makes it perfectly balanced and highly prized.

This is only the Sumo's second season. It started last week and is expected to run through the end of March. You can find Sumos ($2.89-$3.99/pound) at Whole Foods Markets, select grocers including Andronico's and Berkeley Bowl (Berkeley), (Draeger's (Menlo Park), Lunardi's (Walnut Creek), and some Northern California Safeways.

Thanks for this nice update, AT. I did run down to Whole Foods in Encinitas to pick up 6 at $2.99/lb. And, found 2 seeds in my first Dekopon, but I think they were not polyembryonic. I think there were just two cotelydons after I peeled off the outer seed cover. But, planted them anyway I'm going to have to study what a polyembryonic seed looks like from some of my other citrus, so I can readily recognize a monoembryionic seed from a polyembryonic seed. I know they should be nice and fat, and have I do like them a lot, they're up there on my list of favorites, but I still think the Seedless Kishu has all the mandarins beat right now At least, out here in S. Calif. I'm excited about my little Seedless Kishu producing next year, hopefully.

I have to disagree with the lukewarm reviews. I have been grabbing two per day for breakfast at Wholle Foods. I find them delicious, akin to a huge Satsuma. At a $1.69 per fruit, they better be good.

Of course, many here grow multiple varieties on site and are justly used to a much higher standard.

Fresh off the tree they may be better, but I still like my Ponkan's better.

You'll have to wait until next December now. lol