MAGTAG 2009 - Winners and Notes
 

Another year, another great MAGTAG.

We really lucked out, because it didn't rain during the entire time of the event. I think the bad weather forecast probably scared away a few of our regulars, but I counted 42 attendees.

We had 58 varieties (one more than Heinz!) this year, - not including the duplicates. For example, both my sister-in-law and I brought Sungolds, but hers won 12th place and mine didn't win anything! Grrrr.

As expected, Greg Flynn entered the largest tomato, with a 1-lb 10-oz Persimmon. At least the guy who gave him the plant TOLD him it was a Persimmon. I've never seen one that big!

Trudi and Steve traveled the farthest (Long Island), although Hank and Cheryll were a close second (Winchester, VA). Of course, this doesn't include the couple who vacation here and live the rest of the year in Saudi Arabia. (Names, please?)

This is the list of the Top 20 Winners. We have a Top 20 this year because the Flynn kids and their friends made so many beautiful medals for us. Once again, a cherry tomato was #1. (I'm typing this from my niece Maggie's notes, so please let me know if we've misspelled anything.)

1. Marx - G. Flynn
2. White Currant - G. Flynn
3. Absint - Trudi D.
4. Matt's Wild Cherry - Annebert
5. Chang Li - Trudi D.
6. Guernsey's Pink Blush - Trudi D.
7. Persimmon - Annebert
8. Black Cherry - Annebert
9. Little Lucky - G. Flynn
10. Sophie's Choice - G. Flynn
11. Emily - Melvin Phillip(s) for G. Flynn
12. Sungold - Suzy Strakna
13. SuperSweet 100 F2 - Jim & Susan
14. Hungarian Heart - Cecilia_MD7a (woo-hoo! I finally won something!)
15. Gold Medal - ? (Perhaps Manure_Queen?)
16. Aunt Gertie's Gold - John (pumpkinhead1961)
17. Maybe Peppermint - Mary (Manure_Queen)
18. Murhurlu - Trudi D.
19. Hopkins - Suzy Strakna
20. Brandywine - Suzy Strakna

Interesting list - a few are past winners - Black Cherry, Emily, Sungold, Brandywine - but folks grew many new varieties this year.

Rob Kasper from the Baltimore Sun stopped by again this year, so maybe MAGTAG will be mentioned in his column.

I personally want to thank Janet M. for pitching the Race for the Cure in my honor. If any of you are interested in joining, or donating, our webpage is:

[URL]http://komenmd.kintera.org/faf/search/searchTeamPart.asp?ievent=310505&lis=1&kntae310505=93C1C6D6B38B4E3799A9939EF4DB5BAD&team=3438570&tlteam=0[/URL]

Once again, thanks to everybody who attended. Hope you haad as much fun as I did! Now I just have to keep shampooing my hair to get the "Cherry Cola" dye out of it ...

P.S. Photos to come!

Cecilia,

Thanks for all of your hard work. I was great fun and lots of people brought tomatoes and sidedishes. It was a grand success. Much of my family came and they really enjoyed themselves.

I have 2 corrections.

The first place winner is Morx and not Marx and the my freind that submitted the Emily tomato was Elvin Philip and not Melvin.

Morx is a creation I made by crossing Cherokee Green with White Current last year. I am hoping that growing this one out next year will yeild a green-when-ripe cherry worth keeping! If so I can name it after another one of my kids.

Greg

thanks for sharing the result, always interresting

John (pumpkinhead1961) had a good suggestion for next year - let's use a different color plastic cup for the pennies we use for voting, as it was confusing trying to find them among the tomato cups. Sounds good to me.

Cecelia,

I was thinking the same thing! Clear plastic tumblers or cocktail cups may work.

Greg

I forgot to mention - Greg and I decided to donate the money in the tip jar to the Maryland Food Bank (an affiliate of Feeding America, formerly known as America's Second Harvest). We figured it had to be a food-related charity!

Thanks to your generosity, we raised $113 to help feed our hungry neighbors during these hard times.

For more info on the Maryland Food Bank, follow this link:

[URL]http://www.mdfoodbank.org/site/pp.asp?c=ahKKI2PKIsE&b=218147[/URL]

Gosh, Cecilia and Greg, I'm sorta wishing there were a way for us to help defray all of your costs. The shelter cost was only a small portion of your costs. Let us all figure out a way. ( They are working behind our backs, you know, by selflessly redirecting the money.) Ah, perhaps checks written to their children in the tip jar. Just an idea, perhaps for next year. Think about that! mwhahaha. Hank

So was the judging based solely on taste? I'm really surprised to see so many cherries on the list. I'd be interested in a sandwich category, I'll bring the bread next year! I wish.

Yes, the contest is based solely on taste. Our winners list usually contain a few cherries - I remember that Black Cherry won first place last year, and Sungold is always in the running.

I know in my case that most of my large slicers have petered out by the time MAGTAG comes along. A lot has to do with the weather, too - I think most of our beefsteak-type 'maters simply tasted blander this year.

[I][COLOR=mediumturquoise]I think most of our beefsteak-type 'maters simply tasted blander this [/COLOR][/I]
[I][COLOR=mediumturquoise]year. [/COLOR][COLOR=black]Do you think it was an excessive amout of water earlier in the year? Hank[/COLOR][/I]

Yeah, Hank, I think that's probably the reason. Oh well, another season, another MAGTAG ...

Hank,

They say a dry season is good for grapes. It is supposed to concentrait the falvor. I will bet their is some truth in this.

Greg

Oh, Cecilia, I just noticed that you didn't have me in for winning my prize #13 last year -- Jim and Lisa, those people from Saudi Arabia. Boohoo, I wrote my whole family that my little cherries were GOOD! Lisa

Sorry, Lisa - did I call you Susan by mistake?

moving this up so the dates are in order.