Tomato lovers, prepare to salivate: The red, ripe Jersey tomato of the past may be poised for a comeback.
Once upon a time, Jersey tomatoes were so succulent you could eat a slice on crusty bread with just a dash of salt and achieve nirvana, though kids today - especially those under 37 - may find it hard to believe.
But it's true - tomatoes were tasty. And now a team of top-level scientists from Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station wants to bring back that flavor.
Starting sometime in the 1970s, Jersey farmers (aided and abetted by Rutgers scientists) started breeding tomatoes for transportability instead of taste. And it showed: Their crops made it to market unscathed but were as tasteless as the era's polyester pants.
People have been very unhappy for many years about their tomatoes, says Jack Rabin, a former South Jersey farm boy who grew up to become associate director of the Rutgers experiment station.
Rabin became the point person behind an ambitious five-year effort to put the venerable Jersey tomato back on its proper pedestal - as a juicy fruit.
Skeptics still say it can't be done. But last week, stage one of Jack Rabin's judgment day arrived.
The Great Tomato Tasting took place in a field on a brutally hot and humid August afternoon at the university's Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Bridgeton. Rabin and his team stood beside long rows of tomato-filled tables and faced their critics.
Previously, only farmers and state staffers participated in tastings. This would be the first time home cooks, gardeners and chefs were invited to have a say. And it would be the first occasion in a long time to taste a crop bred for the pleasure of people, instead of for the profitability of farmers.
The event drew more than 120 tomato lovers who rated the crop on sweetness, acidity, flavor, texture and overall quality.
"I'm glad to see they're working on the problem," said Pauline Jonas, who lives in Thorofare, Gloucester County. "But the stores need to do a better job of labeling the tomatoes on their shelves."
The sample tomatoes, cut in quarters that very morning, sat in bowls labeled by number as the volunteer tasters grazed from one station to another recording their impressions. To cleanse their delicate palates, volunteers were fed fresh water and oyster crackers between tastes.
