Another trip to the Ann Arbor Farmer's Market, produced another variety of peach to talk about. The Sugar May is dark red skinned peach with a white flesh. You might think that white flesh is something different, but actually all peaches use to be white-fleshed. The orange-fleshed varieties were created and became the dominant peach in America. But in recent years the white-fleshed peach has made a comeback.
The Sugar May peach was created in Modesto, California. It is ready to harvest about 16 days before red haven peaches, thus is an early season peach. If you get a ripe specimen you should be able to remove the stone without much trouble, even though these peaches are considered clingstone.
My Experience with this Peach in 2010 (Rating Scale 1-10)
Acidity: 5
Peach Flavor: 7
Sweetness: 7
Juiciness: 5
My Experience with this Peach in 2013 (Rating Scale 1-10)
Acidity: 5
Peach Flavor: 5
Sweetness: 6
Juiciness: 5
Good for Canning: Maybe (see below)
Overall Feeling: Here you see I rated this peach on two occassions in two different years. Both samples I got from the same exact orchard. The results were a little different. I gave this peach a higher flavor rating in 2010, then I did in 2013. Part of that may be due to all the rain we got here in Michigan during June and July. This may have diluted the flavor. What stayed the same was the juice level and acidity. These white peaches are more acidic than a lot of the other white peaches I have tried. They also are not particularly juicy. I still have some to eat this year, so hopefully the others one will be better, but right now I really don't fully recommend this variety. It's not bad for an early season peach, but nothing to be that excited about.
What About Canning These Peaches?
If you want to can these peaches they would work. I have always been able to get the pits out easily that would make your job of preparing the peaches easier. The downside though of canning white peaches is the color. White peaches tend to brown very easily. The color might not be what you like. Adding some lemon juice could help, unless the color doesn't bother you most people stick to yellow flesh peaches.
Where is the best place to buy a good peach? Click here to read my article on shopping for peaches.
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