so, i saw this fig actually coming out of the soil few weeks ago. today, it looked ripe, but was hard to tell since it won't droop due to being popping out of the soil.

it had little crack on the skin and the ants were trying their best to break in. i tried to get my knife and it just dropped into my hand without me having to cut is loose. save me the trouble of cleaning my edc.

it was early in the morning and the figs was still cool. it tasted very refreshing, and sweet, but it went down too quick for me to truely enjoy the every note.

Looks like a breba fig interior and im not doubting you one bit i saw your profile !

martin,

i'm not too sure. it does look like breba, but it's from this year's growth. here is link to my breba from the same tree.

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/2nd-VdB-breab-of-the-season.-5920168

oh the martial art bit? my sword arm has been lame since my shoulder surgery and i can't pick up the sword now days. it's only good for playing with pocket and kitchen knives.

my first degree certificate. flunk the 2nd degree test, and ended up with shoulder surgery.

Nice,
after seeing the photo I had to run out and check, no luck.
I did some pinching but nothing ripe yet.

Thanks Bullet .   ; )

just went out and noticed one of breba almost ripe and about to drop off. did i say that i love VdB already? this tree has been just too good to me. my Kathleen's Black better be better than VdB as far as the taste is concerned. that tree has been p'ing me off for sometime. tho, now it's starting to put out figs without pinching. new branches are coming out and they have figs on them. if it doesn't taste as good or better thatn VdB.. i'm chopping it off to the ground just for the heck of it like this one.

by the way, this KB has been curved up and sent to members of this forum.

Bullett oh VdB is one darn good fig yes sir and produces least here in a pot.

Pete,

Kathleen's Black does seem to be slow to begin production and I know we each have our own taste preferences, but to me this one is head and shoulders above the crowd for taste. I love my VDB also, but KB is far superior in my view.

Why, in particular?

barry,

that's what i've heard and that's what i'm waiting on. i mean, Black Madeira's putting on the figs after 3 months... it's been 3 years since i got the KB.

You certainly are due then Pete. But that time frame is not uncommon. I was fortunate enough to get my first fig at 2 years. Black Madeira fruiting that early is pretty unusal on the other hand.

Shah8 If you are posing your question to me I mentioned the taste is better to me, very rich. 

Ah, it's just that the whole fig tasting scene is waaaaay different from the tea(especially puerh) and wine drinking scene when it comes to describing why something is better or not.  There tends to be only a few descriptors, and it rarely tends to be helpful as far deciding which figs are truly desired.  I have very little idea of what "rich" actually means, and I have every intention of inviting myself over to satellitehead's community garden and get a broader sense of what figs offer.

Right now, I have only a smidge concept of why anything's better than another.  Black Madeira, for instance offers texture, sweetness, and aftertaste.  Ronde de Bordeaux offers sweetness and a spicy, thin skin, or something like that.  I have no real idea of why Ischia Black or Maltese Falcon should be considered great, except the former is fruity?  Barnisotte and Col de Dame has strong berry taste, but more to it than that, for different reasons, and I'd love to try out Zidi's molasses? flavor.

And even so, since figs are so sensitive to environment, I'm almost wondering if Kathleen Black is better because it gets ripe better in your particular climate, or perhaps the tree gives better fruits, younger.  The resources relating to figs now would have been awesome in the early '90s when we first planted those Petite Negris, especially in the sense that we might have gotten two different figs instead of two of one fig.  Anyways, there doesn't really seem to be many elite figs older than about 5-7 years, and in many ways, this is an extremely young version of a very old hobby.