Artisanal blends of specialty heirloom tomatoes,
naturally grown and simply combined.
Imagine having a tomato named after you! We can thank Ruby Arnold of Greeneville, Tennessee for
this large multi-colored beefsteak with sweet, juicy flesh and a hint of spiciness.
Savory and sweet, this rich and flavorful variety packs the punch of a larger tomato into an
extra-large sized dark-purplish cherry. This productive fast-growing favorite never disappoints.
Brown-berry adds unique brownish-red color to the mix with deep savory flavor. A close cousin of
the black cherry the large brown berries add earthy notes to every recipe.
With those olive yellow stripes and zingy flavor is it any surprise that the Green Zebra was
introduced in the 1980’s? A modern heirloom that combines four other heirlooms, Green Zebras
bring spice and eatability to green
tomatoes that were usually considered inedible and tossed out.
This sweet and tart tomato has unique apricot colored skin with red flesh inside. It’s comes to
us from France and its name translates to “yellow flame”, an appropriate description of its
color and the fact that its
citrusy flavors intensify when roasted.
Is it purple, purplish-black or dusky-mauve? Whatever color you see, these plum-shaped tomatoes
originally from the Ukraine, pack a real punch in the flavor department. Sweet and meaty (some
describe the flavor as bacon),
their skins resist cracking so they hold up well in the roasting pan and in our flavor profile.
A perfectly round, firm black tomato with complex flavor. Though they grow to the size of a
baseball we don’t throw these beauties around.
This may be the heirloom tomato you see in your mind when you hear “heirloom tomato”. Its big
with an irregular shape, not quite round, not quite oval, its been described as having
shoulders! Cherokee Purple is one of the
oldest heirlooms. These smokey sweet tomatoes perfectly represent the power of seed-saving
seed-sharing and preserving our culinary heritage.
A medium-sized, maroon beefsteak tomato that found its way here from Crimea on the Black Sea, an
area famous for its perfect tomato summers.
A classic heirloom that dates back to 1885. Reddish pink in color with superb-sweet flavor,
Brandywine is a slow-grower, but well worth the wait for its classic tomato profile.
Legendary for being one of the original tomatoes saved by the Ott family in Iowa in the 1800’s.
The Otts went on to cultivate Seed Savers Exchange, which is where we continue to get our seeds
today. Who could be surprised
that the German Pink would inspire a movement, with its rich sweet flavor and versatility. Funny
thing is, they also don’t produce many seeds, so you can see why it is important to save them!
Vibrant and orange, meaty and mild, with few seeds. Darrell Kellogg from Michigan is rumored to
have saved a few from a friend in West Virginia. Kellogg, a railroad supervisor not a cereal
magnate, knew a good tomato, its
orange profile lends a papaya flavor uniqueness to our bliss.
Lithuanian in origin, brought to Wisconsin by immigrants in the 1900’s, these prolific beauties
are perfect for canning. They are petite, oval, full of flavor and juiciness.
The sweet taste of this heirloom matches the sweetness of the story behind its name. Orange and
reliable, settlers in covered wagons brought this variety to western Nebraska in the late 1800s
and traditionally gave the
seeds to newlywed brides to share with her new family members.
The size and shape of a small pear, with dark purple skin and equally opulent flesh. Sometimes
called the Russian Black Truffle, this is one of the finest Russian tomatoes.
A midwesterner to the core, reliable, versatile and classic tomato red color, a proud graduate
of University of Wisconsin, class of 1945.
Winner of Seedsavers 2007 Tomato Tasting. Bright Orange and sweet, looks and tastes like a jolly
grandparent of our favorite non-heirloom tomato: the sweet sungold.
Winner of Seedsavers 2012 Tomato Tasting. Another modern heirloom, this one with Italian
heritage. A prize-winning productive fruit that has excellent flavor-forward tomato taste.
An orange beefsteak with coral stripes and peach-like sweetness. This heirloom impresses with
its size and bountiful harvest rate. If we aren’t roasting these they end up on our sandwiches.
Similar to Cherokee Purple but darker in color, Cherokee Chocolate was discovered by Craig
LeHoullier scouring his Cherokee Purples for that one-of-a kind darker color profile. The seeds
of that one anomaly were
cultivated, shared and saved and now we have a smoky-sweet heirloom with chocolaty color.
Back in 1925 it took a contest to award the previously named Number 400 with the no-nonsense
title Wins All. Wins All is a rosy pink, firm, juicy classic tomato.
We don’t know who Aunt Ginny was but we admire her namesake for taking on the classic Brandywine
and bringing us this complex and melodic-flavored tomato. This dark pink beefsteak is originally
from Germany.
