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bradflorida

Hatcher Mango

bradflorida
12 years ago

Hi Harry,

What's your opinion of the taste of the Hatcher mango?

Brad

Comments (16)

  • bsbullie
    12 years ago

    big, pretty looking mango, goes downhill from there. There are MANY better varieties out there. I would not even consider panting a Hatcher. Disclaimer - this is my opinion as other may fell different...but then again, you asked for opinions.

  • jeffhagen
    12 years ago

    Agreed. I've only had a couple, but the flavor was mediocre to good. Not worth planting out unless you are a 'collector' and have a Harry-sized property .

    Jeff

  • bradflorida
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Thanks bsbullie and jeff.

    Good to know. There is a lot of hype on their website, and I just wanted to be sure :)

    Brad

  • squam256
    12 years ago

    The Hatcher family has, to their credit, done an excellent job of marketing what is an otherwise unremarkable mango. There are people who literally drive dozens of miles just to buy the fruit. One has to wonder how many of these people have tried varieties other than Hatcher though.

  • hmhausman
    12 years ago

    Man....the mango snobbery on this forum is intense. Ok, so I may be one of the worst perpetrators...... Anyway, I think you guys are being a bit harsh on the ole Hatcher mango. I think what we have here is a case where it has been over hyped by the folks at Hatcher Hill and therefore are feeling some amount of over hype on the negative side, kind of in reaction to the over exhuberance and marketing by those selling the tree and fruit. First, let me say that the tree prices being asked by Hatcher Hill are over priced to say the least. The fruit is equally expensive. The fruit is large and meaty, disease resistant and quite nice as far as eating quality. Is it the best mango in the world....no. Does it win taste tests when matched against other more flavorful cultivars.....no. Is there a place for the tree in your yard? Well, I don't think it should be booted out of consideration just like that. Ok.....I've said my piece. Good Sunday to everyone.

    Harry

  • bsbullie
    12 years ago

    Harry, no offense but you seem to be giving it/them credit for their marketing. The taste has no characteristics of a mango I would say anything that good about (yes, it is a mango and not much more) and as I stated, it is a very nice looking mango which as you mentioned would allow for the fact it appears to be disease resistant. BUT, with that said and out of the way, with the many varieties available, and most of us having limited space, I would not buy something which is at best marginal to average in taste, because of marketing. Do you have a Hatcher ?

    Oh, and a very good Sunday to you also :)

  • bsbullie
    12 years ago

    Brad - unless you have a lot of land and just want to collect, which from your questions I would guess this is not the case, I would suggest holding off on future purchases till next season when you have the opportunity to taste a lot of the available varieties. Taking the word from others may lead you to purchase something you don't like or not purchasing something you do like. Take the time and expense, if you have the resources, to travel to not only PI but to Fairchild and to other places on the East coast to taste as many of the varieties as possible. This will allow you to make sure you are purchasing the right varieties for you, not just what "we" tell you are the best/favorites.

  • hmhausman
    12 years ago

    Rob:

    No offense taken. You said, "The taste has no characteristics of a mango." I really doubt that this mango would have achieved the level of success that it has, even with the best of marketing, if this was a widely held view of the fruit. And, I wonder what exactly you mean when you say "taste of mango." When I initially became interested in mangoes (to eat, rather than to just throw as I did when I was a kid here in South Florida), it was mangoes which tasted like pineapple or citrus or coconut that got me hooked. Mangoes that tasted like mangoes didn't initially interest me. I did not like the flavor. So, I stand by my account of the Hatcher mango, marketing hype notwithstanding.They are fiberless and sweet and are enjoyable to eat. BTW, I do have a tree. I was on the Hatcher Hill list to purchase one of their exorbitantly priced trees. Then I was fortunate to find a much better priced specimen at the Palm Beach Rare Fruit Society sale. Then the Hatcher folks called me about 2 months later to tell me that I had risen to the top of their list. I was happy to be able decline their sales offer. That all being said, perhaps I am being a bit argumentative today.I sometimes get carried away. Brad should definitely wait to taste these mangoes to determine for himself what his taste preferences are.

    Harry

  • bsbullie
    12 years ago

    Harry - you are correct in that my sentence did not come across how I meant it to. I meant to say that, to me, the Hatcher had no special characteristics taste-wise (i.e. - pineapple, coconut, lemon, orange creme, etc.), I feel they just have that general "mango" flavor. I do agree they are free of fiber and sweet but they have no SPECIAL characteristics beyond that. I too, when first eating mangoes, may have thought this was a great mango but as you know, after you taste the dozens of other varieties and learn what you like that the Hatcher then becomes just an average, "boring" mango. Would I purchase or want to plant a Hatcher tree, no...if I found a fresh local grown Hatcher mango right now would I but it to eat, yes (and the key here is "right now" as there are no other local fresh mangoes available).

    Rob

  • pj1881
    12 years ago

    If Zills comes up with a Cheeseburger Mango everything goes right out the window!

  • squam256
    12 years ago

    lol pj

  • abayomi
    12 years ago

    Tasted the (in)famous Hatcher at Harry's Mecca this year. Next to the other gems on offer, it was not noteworthy. In isolation, it may have been rated better.

  • bradflorida
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Thanks everyone for your input. Interesting to see on the Hatcher website that their entire grove got destroyed by a windstorm in July of this year.

    Brad

  • bsbullie
    12 years ago

    hmmm...I can't recall any July windstorms in the area this year bad enough to destroy a mango grove.

  • bradflorida
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    From the Hatcher website:

    Our 2011 Hatcher mango season has come to an abrupt end. Recently several strong windstorms came through the grove and blew most of the Hatcher mangoes off the trees. I'm sorry to tell you that now our trees are bare! Our season is usually not through until sometime around Labor Day and it's still July. This has never happened in our history here at Hatcher Mango Hill.

  • bsbullie
    12 years ago

    With the way the season went on the East coast of Florida this year (everything fruited early and all at once, timing was way off on all ripeing of all varieties...we should still have late season mangoes available in a normal season), I wouldn't be surprised if what is posted on their website was to "cover up" the "truth" as to not discourage any future sales. I live a few miles from them and Zills is also in the area...windstorms were not the issue this year, it was the crazy climate we had from late January on. Mango season was early shortened, Lychee season was shortened, Saps season was shortened...

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