Costco is switching things up in the produce department and recently started carrying Pink-a-Boo Pineberries in a 10 ounce tray. The pineberries appear to be grown by Wish Farms in Plant City, Fl.
I had never seen or heard of pineberries before I saw this package so I know it had to come home with me for a taste test!
What is a Pineberry?
According to the Stark Bros website pineberries are:
“Pineberries are descendants of the strawberries native to North America, Fragaria virginiana, and strawberries native to Chile, Fragaria chiloensis.
They are not genetically modified, nor are they somehow a cross between a pineapple and a strawberry.”
Pineberries are considered a cultivated variety of strawberry and grow in a similar manner. Pineberries are typically a little smaller than most commercial varieties of strawberries and have a white flesh with red seeds.
Taste Test
When I was researching this fruit I read all sorts of fancy flavor descriptions with “Notes of This” and “Hints of That” coupled with a few “Undertones of Something”.
When I ate a few of these the only flavor note I picked up was “Watered Down Strawberry”. There is absolutely nothing unpleasant about the taste or texture of the pineberries. They are perfectly neutral.
I struggle to understand the market for this product. Are they trying to sell to people who like sort of like strawberries but only wish they had less flavor?
Who knows, maybe this fruit is loaded with a complex flavor profile and my palate is too simpleton to pick it up?
Price
The pineberries are Item Number 1538556 and are found in the refrigerated walk in cooler of the produce section.
The price of the 10 ounce package is $4.99 which is about $8 per pound.
On one hand paying $8 per pound for some fruit seems pretty expensive. On the flip side, it only cost me five bucks to try something new and learn a bunch of stuff in the process. From that angle the price seems like a fair deal.
Price aside, I probably will not be buying these again as I simply like regular strawberries better.
