When they were first test tested out in the field in 100 degree weather, they felt the flavor of the grape was more of a toffee/caramel flavor.Р”В«ut when chilled and taste tested by potential consumers, the overwhelming response they got was that these grapes taste just like cotton candy. But hey at least we do have grapes that taste like Cotton Candy СЂСџв„ўвЂљ Why They Taste Like Cotton Candy Thanks to IFG and growers like Grapery was are seeing and more grapes out there with unique flavors like Gum Drops or unique shapes like Moon Drops.Р”Вon't you want to just reach through your screen and grab a bag of those grapes? Too bad that technology hasn't been invented yet. The table grape selection is no where near the selection of flavors available as juice, whether fermented or not.

My wife always wondered why white grape juice didn't taste like grapes - that's because she never tasted a grape like the Niagara grape that companies like Welch's uses for white grape juice. Or, have you ever wondered why grape juice doesn't taste like the seedless grapes you buy? And in case you were wondering, the CEO of Grapery told me he tried making wine with them and it was not good! Even though I am not a wine drinker, I know there are so many different types of wines available with different flavor profiles. If you take a walk over to the wine section at any store you see the true potential of grapes. So when they taste something as unique as Cotton Candy grapes it comes as a complete shock to them. Most Americans are used to eating grapes that just don't have much flavor to them. Flavor doesn'tР’В seem to be a priority for most grape growers. But in recent years, theyРІР‚в„ўve been arriving at grocery stores earlier and earlier (as in, right about now).I think part of the reason why people have a hard time believing a grape can have a flavor like is they are use to flavorless, balls of sugar water, called seedless grapes. They tend to show up in stores in early fall, and GraperyРІР‚в„ўs website indicates theyРІР‚в„ўre in season from August 10 to September 10. (So yeah, theyРІР‚в„ўre still pretty good for you.) When (and where) can you buy Cotton Candy grapes?Р”Р„ll grapes are in season (and at their tastiest) from May to October, and Cotton Candy grapes are no different. The grapes themselves have about 12 percent more sugar than your run-of-the-mill table grapes, but far less than raisins. According to Cain, the grapes have almost no tartness, and the uncommon grape varietals they cross-bred were selected for their vanilla-like flavor. Surely they add chemicals to make the grapes taste so sweet, right? Wrong. How do Cotton Candy grapes taste like cotton candy? He and his team developed the Cotton Candy grape by hybridizing two existing grape species (kind of like a pluot, which is a cross between a plum and an apricot).Р’В It took aroundР’В 100,000Р’В tries withР’В test tube plants beforeР’В they happened upon the cotton-candy flavored grapes. Horticulturalist David Cain wanted to bring back the natural flavors of grapes, which heР’В believed had been stripped away by decades of breeding fruit to withstand shipping and storage. But back to Cotton Candy grapes: According to NPR, they came about not as a nod to junk food, but the opposite. ThereРІР‚в„ўs also Tear Drops, which are extremely juicy and look like fingers, and Moon Drops, which are tubular and highly flavorful. Cotton Candy grapes are actually a varietal specific to fruit distributor Grapery, which grows an assortment of new grape varietals with cheeky names and, sometimes, funny shapes.

Cotton candy grapes