And if you want a real challenge, try to describe, using words only, the difference between the taste of a Bacon and a Zutano. People have been sampling food at open markets since time began. I personally think health department officials should be required by law to shop only in supermarket produce departments for the rest of their natural lives. The other avocado that is to die for is the Reed . I know because my customers pester me all year for it after I've hooked them with free samples.
Prolonged heat spells, like wind storms, knock avocados off the trees prematurely.
The Reed is the most easily identifiable of all the avocados. Reeds never mush up in salads, as an over-ripe Hass is prone to do, and they keep perfectly in the refrigerator after being cut open for up to a week without turning brown. This is important because Reeds can easily weigh up to a pound and a half, way too much for a live-alone to eat at one sitting, even for the most dedicated avocado gourmand. I rate them above all other avocados in all uses except one, guacamole. Another value to taste-testing at farmer's markets is keeping the less commercial avocado varieties attractive to the farmer.