Cuor Di Bue Albenga, the first of our 'Vegetables You Need to Know'

And yes, technically, a tomato is a fruit... but that rankles my sensibilities. So we are going to call it a vegetable. In today's world, calling a fruit, a vegetable, shouldn't flicker the needle of righteous anger so let's away and talk about this wonderful Italian variety!

I have to say, this is one of my fave varieties in my zone 6 garden, it will accept less water than other varieties, and will keep producing at higher temps. Very prolific. Wonderful taste and really meaty. They tend to vary in amount of fluting but I find it part of their charm. Some sources say that plants will fruit in 70days, I haven't seen that degree of precociousness in my garden, but I will say per size, they are one of the earlier varieties. Few seeds and bruises easily, so it is one of the rarer tomatoes to find at market.

Its got a rich, balanced tomato taste, close to the purples in umami. Not a good stuffer, but otherwise a great performer in the kitchen!

In short, this is a MUST HAVE in your garden to grow for yourself and these tend to go fast at the plant sales in the spring, so if you want The Oxheart from Albenga in your garden, get 'em when you see 'em!