August, 2004 - Volume 5, Issue 10



Taste the Sweets of Summer Now



We are in the height of the bountiful summer fruit season. Here in Placer County, folks have been growing peaches and other summer fruits for over a century. And now at Newcastle Produce, we have an amazing selection of the finest, freshest, and sweetest fruit you can get.

PERFECT PEACHES
“August is the height of the peach season,” says Jan. “I remember getting letters at summer camp from my grandmother, and she would always write that she was busy canning peaches. My family was in the peach business then, and they didn’t let any go to waste.” When you have fruit this sweet and delicious, you don’t want to waste any! Our locally grown fruit is tree ripened, and that means it is tops in flavor and sweetness. (Check out our website for great peach recipe ideas!) Peach season also means variety because each kind of peach ripens at a slightly different time, and the growers plant several varieties so that we can enjoy fresh, ripe fruit all season.

Try our peaches from Howard Nakae’s Twin Peaks Enterprises, a Newcastle ranch that has been around for a long time. We also have peaches from Tosh Kuratomi of Otow Orchards in Granite Bay. And don’t miss our organic peaches from Chris Bierwagen’s Donner Trail Fruit in Chicago Park.

MANY MELONS
We have mountains of melons in the store now, many of which are grown on our own Twin Brooks Farm in Loomis. Try these summer favorites: Ambrosia (a soft, sweet, juicy melon); Galia (a green flesh, Israeli perfume melon that is delightfully aromatic); Primo (a firm, traditional cantaloupe with extra-sweet flesh); Breakfast Melon (a sweet, Tuscan-style cantaloupe with distinct ribs); Tiger Baby (a small, red-fleshed watermelon); and Yellow Doll (a small, yellow-fleshed watermelon).

Most melons will not get any sweeter after they are picked. They will get softer as they sit, so eat your melon quickly if you like it firm, and hold a few days if you like it softer.

Need help choosing a watermelon? Here are some tips from Jan. “A good melon will reverberate,” she says. “Compare the sounds of two watermelons. The lower tone will be the riper melon.”

Stop in soon and pick up some summer sweets!