Nature's Candy

Hi folks, and welcome to my blog. It is a magical place, filled with joy and wonder. And rainbows! If you read my blog, you will discover important things about art, culture, the world, and maybe even yourself. I want to touch the soul of each and every one of you, dear readers, and give you something to make your day shine a little brighter. If you're feeling down in the dumps, simply check into my blog and you'll get a warm, fuzzy feeling in your heart. Why? Because I love you.

Now, you may be wondering about the name of this blog. Let me explain. Most people in this country have never eaten a Concord grape. This is a shame. Seedless grapes (a.k.a. green grapes, although there are also red and black varieties) are usually the only grapes found in the supermarket; as a result, they are the only kind eaten by the average American consumer. The flavor of seedless grapes is sweet yet bland, and it bears little resemblance to the flavor of Concord grapes. And yet, when someone eats a Concord grape for the first time, he/she usually recognizes the flavor instantly. It is the flavor of grape juice, grape jelly, and grape candy. In fact, most grape-flavored products are made with either the juice of the Concord or a Concord-like flavoring. Moreover, the color of these foods is almost always purple, just like the skin of the Concord. What I'm getting at is this: there is a major disconnect in this society, one in which children are not able to associate the flavor of grape juice with the fruit from which it came. Applesauce tastes like apples, orange juice tastes like oranges, but grape jelly tastes nothing like seedless grapes. It's gastronomic confusion of the worst kind. This problem needs to be fixed, and I am determined to fix it, one blog reader at a time.

Let me tell you what you've been missing. Concords have a taste which is much sweeter and more complex than that of green grapes, with a pleasing tartness that perfectly balances the sugar. Every time I eat one, a symphony of flavors fills my mouth. So if Concords taste so much better, why aren't they more popular? To better understand this dilemma, let's go back to something I mentioned earlier: rainbows. As Confucius once said, you can't have rainbows without rain. Similarly, there is a small price to pay for the miracle of Concords, and that price is the seeds and skins of the grapes. These need to be spit out every time you eat a Concord. Honestly, it's not a big deal, unless you're an infant. The only other drawback is the fact that the grapes are hard to find, but they can usually be found at Korean gorcery stores. Now that you've been enlightened, you have no excuse not to enjoy one of nature's hidden treasures. Let the magic begin!