# Do you find blueberry flavor very distinctive? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 17, 2010, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047 "2010-07-17T18:07:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2010, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/21 "2010-07-18T23:40:27Z")
> [@pravnik](#): > > I wouldn’t have thought so many people found blueberries so tasteless. Is it like a PTC paper thing? I suspect a lot of people don’t know what real blueberries taste like. I remember how tomatoes lost their flavor when I was child; I have watched strawberries lose their flavor as an adult; fruit bred for shipping loses something in taste. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/22 "2010-07-19T00:20:34Z")
> [@j66](#): > > ``` > fruit bred for shipping loses something in taste. > > ``` Yeah, but mine were locally grown and picked a brief time before I ate them. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/23 "2010-07-19T01:29:47Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Well, I’m glad I’m not the only one whose sense of ‘blueberry’ flavor is a bit impaired. If you were around here, I’d convert you with a slice of pie. ---
**Author:** ![tr0psn4j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@tr0psn4j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tr0psn4j)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/24 "2010-07-19T02:58:34Z")
Aren’t these pies going to be loaded with sugar? Most things in life taste good covered in sugar. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/25 "2010-07-21T00:21:19Z")
I usually use about 3/4 of the sugar called for in pies, but yeah, they’ll have some. Still, there’s a huge difference between wild and domesticated blueberries, and IMHO it shows up very strongly in pie. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/26 "2010-07-21T00:42:50Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Yeah, but mine were locally grown and picked a brief time before I ate them. But were they grown on heritage or wild plants and picked ripe? Most fruits are grown on plants bred for durability, not taste, and picked well before they are ripe. I find frozen fruits and vegetables more reliable than fresh, even locally grown. But there is nothing so sweet as fruit picked yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/27 "2010-07-21T01:10:22Z")
Pies are good, but the best way to prepare blueberries is to freeze a big Ziplock bag of them, then break off a chunk and eat it straight. The best way to _eat_ them, of course, is while you’re gathering them. No more than half of the berries you pick should ever make it into the bucket you’re carrying. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/28 "2010-07-21T03:03:31Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Domesticated blueberries, not so much; I actually find them unpleasant and mushy most of the time and don’t eat them. > > But wild blueberries are another matter. They’ve got a very particular, strong flavor that I love. > > And when they’re baked into a pie, they’re absolutely unmistakable. I, too, think there is a huge difference between wild and domesticated blueberries. Love the wild stuff and am positive that the flavor is distinct from other fruit (except for saskatoons and huckleberries, which are kissing cousins. Look for the tiny, tiny blueberries on low bushes. They are a pain to pick but the flavor packs a huge punch. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/29 "2010-07-21T03:44:24Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > I, too, think there is a huge difference between wild and domesticated blueberries. Love the wild stuff and am positive that the flavor is distinct from other fruit (except for saskatoons and huckleberries, which are kissing cousins. > > Look for the tiny, tiny blueberries on low bushes. They are a pain to pick but the flavor packs a huge punch. As near as I can tell, the flavor can vary from bush to bush, even in the same species. (I’m no expert at identifying blueberry species, mind you, but the bushes still look the same). One bush might have relatively insipid berries, or berries full of seeds, or berries that just don’t have much flesh, while an identical-looking bush that’s twenty feet away will knock your socks off with its deliciousness. I wonder if it’s just genetic variation. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2010, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/30 "2010-07-22T03:18:03Z")
I find blueberries to be bland and much prefer more tart berries such as raspberries and blackcurrants. And gooseberries, if made into a pie or crumble. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2010, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/31 "2010-07-22T14:45:16Z")
Blueberries are (were) my favorite fruit, that is until I suddenly became allergic to them. ☹ I can recognize them by smell or taste. ---
**Author:** ![katythepig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3d9bf3/32.png) [@katythepig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/katythepig)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2011, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/32 "2011-02-27T21:48:02Z")
I have never been able to taste blueberries. They taste like nothing to me. I have a friend who claims that some people are born unable to taste the taste of blueberries, but I have never seen any scientific confirmation of this assertion. If I want to eat blueberries for the health advantages, I mix them with other berries (raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, etc.) that I can taste and enjoy, but blueberries alone taste pretty much like wet cardboard to me. I have eaten wild blueberries, picked off the bush (lowberries in the woods of NY State), and they taste the same as commercial blueberries to me. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2011, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/33 "2011-02-27T22:05:17Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Domesticated blueberries, not so much; I actually find them unpleasant and mushy most of the time and don’t eat them. > > But wild blueberries are another matter. They’ve got a very particular, strong flavor that I love. > > And when they’re baked into a pie, they’re absolutely unmistakable. > > A friend of mine thought he hated blueberries. But he was over at my house once when I made a pie from berries I’d picked up along the Blue Ridge Parkway. One bite was enough to convert him: now, like me, he just hates domesticated blueberries. Me too, also. The one thing I really miss about Alaska is picking wild blueberries in the fall. The flavor is intense; there’s nothing better than wild blueberry pancakes. Farmed or hothouse berries don’t even come close, although we eat them for the health benefit. ---
**Author:** ![Arrogance\_Ex\_Machina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/arrogance_ex_machina/32/192_2.png) [@Arrogance\_Ex\_Machina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrogance_Ex_Machina)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2011, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/34 "2011-02-27T22:37:05Z")
The wild berries here in Finland are very good and certainly have a distinctive taste - I’m just not sure if they are bilberries or blueberries in English. They are tiny compared to some of the cultivated berries I saw in US, but I never ate those so I have no idea if there’s a taste difference. Anyways, I remember doing some basic training in the army in the forest and coming back with my mouth all purple. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2011, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/35 "2011-02-27T23:23:51Z")
> [@](#): > > The wild berries here in Finland are very good and certainly have a distinctive taste - I’m just not sure if they are bilberries or blueberries in English. Never heard of bilberries, but blueberries are spheres about the size of the tip of your little finger (for the cultivated ones, at least: Wild are smaller), dark blue in color, and with the end opposite the stem split open into a star shape (which I think is the remnant of the flower). Actually, on looking them up, it looks like bilberries match that description, too, but they’re the same genus, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2011, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/36 "2011-02-28T01:20:22Z")
Bilberries are smaller and have a purple tinged color inside. Blueberries tend to be green or white inside. They are very closely-related. ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/37 "2011-02-28T01:36:35Z")
I ate some today in an effort to be a good role model, and I was reflecting on how blueberries have such an overpowering flavor, and I don’t care for it much. They’re the fruit analog to green peppers for me. ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2011, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/38 "2011-02-28T03:33:03Z")
I’ve only ever had commercially harvested grocery-store blueberries, and I find they have a very distinct and pleasant flavor. I love fresh blueberries. (I _really_ want to try some wild ones now!) ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2011, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/39 "2011-02-28T03:59:56Z")
they do have a stronger after flavor than a flavor to me. flavor is more intense when cooked. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2011, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047/40 "2011-02-28T04:13:00Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > I ate some today in an effort to be a good role model, and I was reflecting on how blueberries have such an overpowering flavor, and I don’t care for it much. They’re the fruit analog to green peppers for me. Yep. Blueberries have a flavor that contaminates everything, for me. I really don’t like them, or raspberries, or blackberries, for that matter. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-find-blueberry-flavor-very-distinctive/547047.md?page=3)