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Heirloom tomatoes: A fruit, not a vegetable

Source:Maryland Industrial Partnerships Release Date:2013-06-28 166
Food & Beverage
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The secret to the only artisan heirloom tomato juice on the U.S. market is to make it like wine

COLLEGE PARK, Maryland, USA — Chomp into a fresh heirloom tomato off the vine and then take a swig of canned tomato juice and try to figure out what went wrong.

Jim Hudson discovered the answer: tomatoes are treated like vegetables. They shouldn't be.

The wonderfully varied, rich flavors and heady aromas of ripe heirloom tomatoes say more of grapes than carrots. The best way to capture the magic of this pulpy summer fruit in a bottle, Hudson reasoned, was to make it like wine: pick the tomatoes only when they were ripe, process them on-site and blend them to create remarkable flavors.

"Each variety of heirloom tomato is unique," said Hudson, who founded Maryland, Eastern Shore-based Luke's Premier Foods to craft his artisan juices. "Some are sweeter and some more acidic, while others possess great aromas. After attending several wine schools, I wondered what would happen if I combined specific heirloom tomatoes to create a signature juice blend, similar to how gourmet wines are fashioned. I found that blended juices almost always taste better than those made from a single variety."

Hudson may have been right, and here's his proof: one of Luke's juices is a finalist in what he calls the "Oscars" of the food industry: the 2013 Specialty Outstanding Food Innovation (sofi?) Awards, in the Cold Beverage Category.

“To be honored with a sofi Award nomination means the product truly stands out above the rest,” said Specialty Food Association president Ann Daw.

Winners are announced at the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City on July 1.

“We are thrilled our Bloody Delicious Mary Mix? made it to the finals,” said Hudson, who named Luke's after his grandson of the same name, who as a child routinely plundered Hudson's heirloom tomato garden. “Our customers tell us these are the first juices that taste like real fresh-picked tomatoes, and we are delighted that sofi? judges agree."

Another of Luke's products, its crisp, invigorating Tomato Nectar?, is unique in the market, according to Hudson. Inspired by chefs who spend 4-6 hours straining ground tomatoes to make clear, sweet tomato water,Buty dziecięce

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