Sweetheart

A 2007 Pacific Northwest extension guide reports high flavor ratings for Bing, Benton and Sweetheart in consumer studies that also rated them highly for both sweetness and tartness. The guide interprets that combination as a useful flavor balance. It cites an unpublished 2005 study without panel size, sample conditions or a score table.

Fruit tested

Fresh-market sweet cherries; exact crop maturity and storage history of any underlying tasting samples are not supplied.

Varieties compared

Bing, Benton, Sweetheart

Use studied

Understanding cultivar-specific eating and handling qualities.

Published

2007

• fruit.webhosting.cals.wisc.edu ↗

The 2007 Pacific Northwest guide uses Sweetheart to show why firmness alone does not establish storage quality: the fruit can be very firm yet develop small skin depressions called pitting. Its Sweetheart account also emphasizes careful picking and packing to reduce this damage.

Fruit tested

Fresh-market sweet cherries; exact crop maturity and storage history of any underlying tasting samples are not supplied.

Varieties compared

Sweetheart

Use studied

Understanding cultivar-specific eating and handling qualities.

Published

2007

• fruit.webhosting.cals.wisc.edu ↗

The CFIA comparison table reports soluble solid concentration of 23.0%, 21.0% and 18.0% for 13S2009 (Staccato), Sweetheart and Lapins respectively. Average fruit weights were 11.2 g, 11.8 g and 13.5 g in that same cultivar order; the weight row records 50 fruits per cultivar.

Fruit tested

Fruit from trial trees on Colt rootstock; a common harvest-maturity standard and postharvest interval are not stated.

Varieties compared

13S2009, Sweetheart, Lapins

Use studied

Understanding cultivar differences in two reported measurements; not a sweetness target or consumer-preference ranking.

• active.inspection.gc.ca ↗

Across the British Columbia study, cherries in the same color class could differ in soluble solids, acidity and dry matter with cultivar and growing year. Dry matter was associated with both soluble solids and acidity, whereas color alone did not capture both dimensions.

Fruit tested

Three CTIFL color classes at harvest and after 28 days at 0.5°C; Staccato also tested at 3°C in 2021

Growing conditions

Research orchard plots; fruit sorted for size, intact stems and absence of visible defects

Varieties compared

Sweetheart, Staccato, Sentennial

Use studied

Fresh cherries intended for export-style storage

Published

2024

• doi.org ↗

After 28 days at 0.5°C, many cultivar-by-year color groups had lower titratable acidity and higher soluble-solids-to-acidity ratios than at harvest. These compositional changes do not show that storage improved consumer liking; the study did not run a taste panel.

Fruit tested

Three CTIFL color classes at harvest and after 28 days at 0.5°C; Staccato also tested at 3°C in 2021

Growing conditions

Research orchard plots; fruit sorted for size, intact stems and absence of visible defects

Varieties compared

Sweetheart, Staccato, Sentennial

Use studied

Fresh cherries intended for export-style storage

Published

2024

• doi.org ↗