Jamison's Life Reviews: Sippers Grape Roma Tomatoes

(Our good friend J.S. will be referred to simply as ‘Sipper’ so as to protect his identity here on the internet)

One step into Sippers lovely backyard and one will notice God’s goodness flowing forth in the north-east corner. It looks more like an octopus-esque beast that has buried its head in the ground, died, shriveled up, and grown leaves on its arms… this man can grow some tomatoes.

Upon a closer look, one cant help but wonder in awe at the success of only a few mere months. These tomatoes are everywhere! And all seem to be successful growths! No duds here friends. The shape of these large-grape-sized tomatoes is truly perfection. Their size is perfect; their color, too, is a recognizable, medium-red color. A color that any child would not hesitate to use in order to color a picture of a tomato in a coloring book.

Once invited into Sipper’s home, I am pleased to find a paper towel sitting next to his sink, with about 20 to 30 of these tomatoes sitting in a neat little row, with small soakings of water beneath each one. “For you!” Sipper exclaims! To which I explain “For sooth! I am honored!

Dinner is served. Unfortunately, and quite ironically, none of these tomatoes are included with the evening’s dinner. However, my wife and I take a few tomatoes and place them on our dish, and happily eat them as side dishes.

Text book taste my friends. Only a fool would scoff at this taste. And only a fool would prefer grocery store tomatoes over these. Truly these tomatoes were grown in a way that only a farmer’s son could grow them. However, Sipper mentions to me that his wife does not enjoy them too much, due to the tough skins. This comment is brushed aside by my wife and me as we bite into another tomato mixed with roasted chicken.

The tomatoes are brought to their new home; mine. The next day, my wife cooked a hearty meal of sausages, peppers, onions, and marinara sauce, mixed in with, of course, our delicious gift from Sipper.

Upon the 2nd or 3rd bite of my dinner, I can’t help but notice a very hard-to-chew item in my mouth… I soon discovered that it was the skins of these roma tomatoes. The taste was certainly fine, but the skin was unmanageable in my mouth. It had to be discarded. It certainly could have been eaten, (my wife ate hers), but I am too fickle.

The next day, I mention to my wife that it is too bad about the tough skins on the tomatoes, to which she replies “Give me one! They are great!” With a confused look on my face, I hand it to her; she bites into it lovingly and tells me to do the same. I pass. I really don’t like tomatoes alone, by themselves. My wife then goes on and on about how sweet and delicious these tomatoes are. She is sold for sure.

Turns out, the skins are not a problem at all when the tomatoes are eaten raw or cold (alone or in a cold salad) but appear to toughen up when cooked. As a side note, my wife mentioned that after eating the tomatoes, she craved something sweet, and then craved water.
These tomatoes are great, but I will stick to eating them raw or cold rather than cooked, although the flavor in cooked dishes can not be matched. I will just squeeze the goodness out like a muscadine if I have to cook with them again. 8.5 out of 10.