so i keep reading about this Celeste. i have been shying away from it. it seems some of them drop all the figs and they are mostly just sweet. 

but more and more pix and being posted and more and more i'm intrigued. so.. what is the best Celeste? any specific source? one that's not dropping and has something other than just being super sweet? 

Improved Celeste doesn't drop figs. I happen to like Celeste figs they are heavy producers and have a pleasant taste to me. In your area they do very well unprotected. There are several variants that are good I'm sure more people will chime in.

The bottom line is if you like eating hundreds and hundreds of delicious figs by year 5. It is for you.

The Celeste in my area, (Marshall Texas, zone 7b-8) are mega producers.  The figs are not as "figgy" as some off the Italian/Greek/Middle East darker figs but as a "common" fig they are superb performers for the backyard growers, which In my opinion are the core group of fig "Havers"  They are not collectors or farmers, only "havers" that enjoy the figs.

I would go for the LSU Purple or the O'Rourke.

I don't know what type they are but I have 2 about five year old in ground since I bought them.  Zone 7 north Georgia.  The breba fruit I think all made it this year.  It just doesn't seem to have a lot of them though.  My daughter and I shared some of them one day and she remarked how good they were with a really nice peach type flavor.   The next day a grand daughter helped me eat some and she thought they had a plum flavor.  So far I haven't tasted a fig I didn't like and don't always slow down enough to define nuances of flavor.  I haven't tasted many varieties only 3 I think and the Celeste is my best so far.  The trees are absolutely covered in figs this year by far the biggest crop ever on them.

goss

I have one Celeste that was sold to me four years ago without any further description by an Ace Hardware. No breba figs but tons
of juicy and flavorful figs. If you like to make jam or fig preserves, a Celeste is a very good choice for mine and your area. I have
had only 3-6 inches of die back from the cold one year.

Celeste drop fruits before ripe in certain climates,not in all.
If you know someone in your climate that has a Celeste that keep all the fruits till ripe,it is most likely they will ripe ,for you.
In my climate I tried 6 different sources ,and all dropped.
Improved Celeste does not drop,because it is an Hybrid of Celeste with better genes.

I will stick with Improved Celeste -- reliablility is key.

Celeste JR is a good one. Like others have said, some Celeste will drop its figs if stressed. If you get one, just keep it in a pot for about 2 or 3 yrs, then plant it in the ground. My 2 in ground trees only dropped it figs when the weather got over 95 degrees and no water. But my Celeste JR is pretty good. Its not in the ground, only in containers and I will keep them in containers too.

Improved Celeste is a complete excellent fig. I love it so much that I got 3 in my orchard and 6 in pots! In my climate, the figs are long and very sweet. Pete if you come to our fig fest in Sept, I'll set you an air layer. Improved celeste a beautiful tree.

Celeste GM, JN, IS, Blue Celeste JN.

Can't hardly beat Celeste (plain old heirloom Celeste) in south louisiana. It's what both my grand parents had and the genes from both of those trees live on and produce tons of delicious sweet figs every year. It is the standard for me, every other variety I've acquired gets compared to Celeste...