Oh how I love cherries!
Until a couple of years ago, they were seldom seen in the shops. Now all the major chains stock them, but at a price that puts them into the Treat category. In fact, that wording appears on the FLM brand I buy in the slogan Tempting Lil’ Treats . Printed on every packet, and so true!
The cherry season is short, about 6 weeks, mid November through to end December. I make the most of it, and to hell with the price. I don ‘t drink or smoke or gamble, so I buy cherries.
A couple of years ago, a friend invited me to join her on a visit to a cherry farm in the Ceres District. I was thrilled: pick your own cherries! Pay by weight at the end of the day. It sounded wonderful, until I came to grips with the blazing sun, the sparse fruit, the high-growing bunches of fruit, way way above my reach. For those of you who don’t know me, I am very vertically challenged i.e. terribly short. All in all, a disappointing expedition. So now I content myself with what the supermarkets offer me.
Cherries are my favourite fruit. They look so appealing – that luscious dark red colour, the smooth shiny texture of each firm cherry, and then the tart but piercingly sweet taste as you take the first bite … nothing equals the taste of a ripe cherry.
I have this idle thought of being on my deathbed, and being asked What is your dying wish? And my faint whisper from my dry, papery lips requests a bowl of ripe cherries.
If a cherry was the last food I ever ate, that would be fine by me.
despatchesfromtimbuktu 
I agree, Alison – cherries from Klondyke Cherry Farm in the mountains outside Ceres are delicious! We’ve been many times, although it’s a long drive, and usually in baking dusty heat, and yes, reaching the best cherries isn’t easy! Several years ago, when we were there last, they had handy ladders at some of the trees; and if you had a strong gentleman with you, he might be persuaded to shlep it across to another tree with delicious cherries beckoning from the higher branches. As I recall, each tree has a ring of coloured paint on the trunk, to identify the particular type – some are dark red, some are sweeter, some are firmer, some are a brighter red. Did you know that Chart Farm in Wynberg sells boxes of cherries from Klondyke in December and January? Their price is more reasonable than in the shops. 🙂 Maybe worth a trip? You could combine it with breakfast or lunch at Chart Farm? 🙂
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No, I did not know that. Excellent suggestion
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Chart Farm and Klondyke Cherry Farm both belong to the Garlick family (I think they’re the family that used to own Garlick’s in Adderley Street many moons ago). So that’s the connection. If you go to Chart Farm, you may also want to pick up some secateurs and a bucket from the farm stall, and cut yourself some fresh roses from the beautiful rose garden. 😀
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I love cherries. Where I grew up in Kent after the war we were surrounded with cherry orchards……
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Lucky you!
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Ek moet regtig ophou om jou blog laat in die aand te lees, want jy skryf my so lus!! Kersies is baie besonders.
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Ha, I think cherries are a good substitute for drinking/smoking/gambling! I also look past the price and buy the largest container in the shop’s fridge. I often start eating already on the way home … with my husband warning me, “Careful not to break a tooth” (because that’s what happened to him). Lekker!
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Ag shame !
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