[mazelife]

Well in the spirit of a friendly flame war, I'm going to put my stake in the ground and say that Carabao mangoes from the Philippines and specifically the Galila, Tablan, and Fresco varietals from the island of Guimaras are the best in the world. Twice I've been lucky enough to end up in Guimaras--a tiny island off the southern coast of Panay--once I ended up there during the annual Manggahan Festival just by lucky happenstance. And my god, are the mangoes amazing: perfumey, floral, intensely sweet; they're the Sauternes of mangoes.

They are quite delicate and my understanding is that almost all the exports from there end up in Japan. I've certainly never been able to find them on either coast of the US. They've somewhat spoiled me for mangoes now as everything you can get here is rather insipid by contrast.

[lambdasquirrel]

Japan does have a thing going for fruit[0]... they even have a luxury fruit store[1].

[0] https://www.dw.com/en/japan-fascination-with-fruits/a-576983... [1] https://www.buzzfeed.com/kevintang/inside-japans-most-insane...

[intended]

Interesting, I've just had a massive Mango year (one of the silver linings of COVID I guess), and these are varietals I haven't seen before. I'll keep a look out for a chance to snag them.

It sounds like a rare variety to find though. Is this the case?

[mazelife]

I don't get the sense that those varietals will only grow in Guimaras, but the locals will tell you that it's not just the varietal but also the specific soil, micro-climate, and cultivation methods of the island that makes them special. I have no idea to what extent that's true, but while I've had lots of good mangoes all over the Philippines, the ones from Guimaras were definitely the best.

[ciguy]

I second this opinion. Guimaras Mangoes are simply the best. I don't know anyone who's tried them and disagrees.