Reed and Walter Hole Avocados
Upon opening my box from Avocado Diva, I found two layers of avocados. You can see the box in the previous blog about avocados. Then I found a letter telling me what varieties were included and a description of each type. Also in the box was a little jewel called a finger lime, citrus caviar.
There was also a card that describes heritage avocados. On the flip side were three ways to ripen avocados since they do not ripen on the tree.
I had a wait about 3-4 days before I could eat any. My box included the following varieties: Reed and Lamb. She also included a couple of Walter Hole and a Gem avocado.
My first taste was the Walter Hole. They are very small and their skin is edible. I cut it in half, salted it and ate it whole. It was a strange experience for me to eat the skin. The interior was soft coupled with biting through the skin. I got a peppery taste which I’ve never experienced with an avocado. Even eating it without the skin,I still got the pepper flavor.
Then I added some balsamic into the center and ate the other half. I enjoyed them both ways. For dinner that night, my husband cut a Reed into wedges and the last Walter Hole with the skin, placed them on lettuce leaves and put an Italian vinaigrette dressing on them. Both were delicious.
Eating it this way, I didn’t get the peppery taste from the Walter Hole that I got before. It really makes a difference if you experiment by trying the avocado with no vinegar or lemon. The natural state let me taste its flavors better because they are delicate.
No browning after one hour – salted only
I had a special twitter wine tasting to attend where you taste 4-6 wines and tweet about them with people around the world. This was a #planetbordeaux tasting. I took a Reed and a Lamb avocado to pair with the wines.
I was stunned that the reed and the lamb never turned brown during the entire tasting and I had just salted the two, no citrus or vinegar. I wanted to taste them virgin, plus with wine – I didn’t want the vinegar or lemon conflict. The avocados actually went great with one harsh red and smoothed it out.
Reed – so creamy – Great skin container
The next day I ate 1/2 reed avocado in its skin, I used it as a bowl. What surprised me the most was how creamy it was. Of all the avocados, it’s so creamy. And it does not turn brown. I had 1/2 in the frig for 3 days with the seed and plastic wrap. It did not turn brown. I ate it with salt and balsamic vinegar and it was yummy and creamy still. The lamb avocado to me tastes like a refined Hass but they are larger than Hass. I wish I had a Hass for a side by side.
The skin on the Reed blew me away. It can be used as a bowl. It was harder to cut through than a Hass. It is strong enough to be a bowl from which to eat the avocado, like a flexible plastic. You could easily stuff the avocado with something too.
The gem got put on lettuce with dressing. I only had one so I felt I didn’t get a really good taste of it. I’ll get another sometime. It was bright, fresh and a bit more tooth to it than a Hass.
The lambs took the longest to ripen. It was lovely experience and I love the Avocado Diva’s attention to detail, her care and her packaging. Now I want a Reed avocado tree in my yard!
Hi Julieanne — I had no idea there was so much variety! Thank you for sharing this.
You are quite welcome! It was my pleasure in many ways!
I love avocado although I don’t think I ever realized the different kinds. It was interesting the taste differences when you used different toppings and I can’t imagine eating the skin! I will definitely have to look for that kind. Was your avocado box a CSA box? Nom, nom!
Candace Davenport
http://www.ourlittlebooks.com ~ Little Books with a Big Message
I have some great news for you. It’s not a CSA. These can be shipped anywhere in the US. You can get a box full of avocados. Check out the Avocado Diva’s link. She is only about 30-40 minutes from me, granted but I know she delivers to many. Each avocado variety has it’s season. Email her any questions you have!.As to the skin, it’s like eating a very well baked potato where the interior is soft and you have a little extra tooth on the skin. It’s similar to that.
I found this to be such a sweet post about something so enjoyable! I eat avocados quite often and enjoyed reading about the different ones. I’m very curious about the Walter Hole. Will have to keep an eye out for those.
I don’t know if these avocados are available from grocery stores but you can get them through the Avocado Diva’s website. You may have to wait until next year to get the Walter Holes. Right now she has Bacons, Zutanos, and Santana. I’ve heard of Bacon avocados and may have tasted them. I have never heard of Zutanos or Santanas. And she has mentioned a couple of other varieties, I’ve not heard of.
Oh wow, avocados are just about my favorite food, but I have never had the opportunity to try all these different varieties. My mouth was watering as I read your descriptions. I’ll now be on the look out for what varieties are on offer around here!
Not sure you can find these heirloom varieties in stores but if you are really an avocado fan, you can order them through the Avocado Diva’s site. Check it out. Even though we aren’t far apart, I did get them mailed to me. The previous post shows the box I think. I should check that! LOL. Yes, I show you the bottom layer of the box in the previous blog about the avocados. I should probably reference it in my blog! duh!
I’ll take a look – thanks!
I looove avocados! They are so precious and nutritious! And I think they are a much healthier alternative than bread or cheese (to go with the wine). I just came back from a trip to Ukraine and Poland where I tried avocado carpaccio– simple and delish. Cheers!
My husband will take an avocado, cut it up and add olive oil and vinegar to it or lemon or lime and we use it in place of butter on bread or put it on our salad. Learned recently that adding tomatoes to the avocado enhanced the nutritional value of the avocados.
Nothing like avo to spice up a meal. They go well with everything or at least that is what I think. You can actually make dressing with them. When I was a kid that was my favorite salad dressing. I love plain, on toast and with the hole filled with sardines, shrimp or crab. Funny how a fruit can be so versatile. Sounds lovely to try a bunch of varieties.
I don’t think of adding spice with avocado unless you put lots of serranos in the avos but I do feel you are adding a lovely richness to a dish. and yes, I remember years ago a dressing called Green Goddess that was made with avocados. It was an utter delight to try a bunch of varieties. Now husband wants to graft a Reed onto our Hass.
Oh my goodness! I had no idea there were so many varieties of avocado! This is great, and your descriptions were fantastic. I’m going to check out the Avocado Diva right now!
That’s wonderful. You will love Brenda and the avocados. Although you may have to wait until next year to taste some of the ones I wrote about!