Lampo: Sorry for the confusion, I just ordered a cutting from Madeira (Black madeira), arrived yesterday very healthy with "green EYES" (= BUD, not leaves). I was thinking that you were the seller from the Bay (?).

I checked yesterday to see what kind of fig  my caprifig is carrying: in fact, due to drought, the whole profichis  felt down. Thus, not surprising my female fig trees "wasp-dependant" stay unpollinised. I guess the lack of water stress them... My caprifig grows on bare soil, with no water reserve. They spend the summer season in semi dormance, without any profichis nor much leaves. I should improve irrigation!!

Black Madeiran: The history of this cultivar is very interesting. That means that the cultivar has been improve by genic flux once installed on Madeira. Have you an idea of putative parent responsible of fruit improvement??

I was upset when I learned the existence of the Malta beauty, and the attraction on US' forumers!... It is clear 'malta beauty' is cosmeticaly a very nice fig, but do you think that cultivar deserves the price reached on the Bay ?? (lol). It is tempting to go herborise on small mediterranean and macaronesian islands to study the germplasm and ficus genetic ressources... Perhaps the "good" genes coding from flavour, odor and texture are far in the South? 

One think i am sure: convective areas as mediterranean island (Pantelleria, Lampedusa, Creta, Cyprus...bare dry soils...) are medium which  apply selective pression toward non adapted phenotypes. It is possible that natural selection  enhanced genotypes with high osmotic pression, thus high sucroses level. (Intern solution fiiled with sucroses improves the water soil succion!!). So, the fig trees from South, naturally selectioned, are naturally adapted to survive in high temperature medium. The incidence of high sucrose intern level is responsible of nice fruits flavour.

In other hand, the shiny skin may be caused by natural selection: high reflectance (albedo), lowering the heat flux axed on the sycone.

it is an embry of evolutive genetic. It is the same with other species, as Quercus ballota (from Spain), whose acorns are sweet. On contrary, acorns of Quercus ilex are astringent:))

Cheers