I ought to let the younger lad select grapes each time I buy them. The black seedless ones he chose a few weeks ago were winners, taste-wise, which made up for the challenge they posed to Mama in the laundry room. The laundry-friendly green ones I chose this past trip are über sour.
A certain deeply cherished matriarch of my oft-referred-to family-of-origin from the Big City who shall remain nameless has been known to sample the grapes at the grocery store before making her final selection. Doing this would've saved us all from a sack of sour grapes. Admittedly, the practice is controversial. As to whether I may have employed it for previous grape selections, I remain mum.
There is the related conundrum of banana selection. What is the protocol when one wants only a certain number of bananas and finds no hands of that number available -- only larger hands? Since they are sold by the pound, is it alright to break apart the hands of bananas in order to purchase only the number one expects to consume between this shopping trip and the next?
My beloved worked in a grocery store when he was in high school. He sometimes makes reference to memorizing all the four-digit produce cash register codes (no stickers on each individual piece of fruit back then), unloading and displaying the produce, stocking, and the arduous task of "facing the shelves" -- the practice of tidying up the shelves by making sure all the product labels were facing outward. Fun times. He has remained silent on the grape-tasting controversy.
These are the questions that weigh heavily upon me sometimes -- and make for lively dinner conversation with the gathered clan. What does one do with an entire bowl of sour grapes anyway?
chocolate granola
10 years ago
I think it's ok to taste the grapes and to separate the hands of bananas to get only the amount you want. My analysis is based on simple contract principals. Each transaction between you and your grocer is a contract and a buyer of goods under a contract has a right to inspect and accept or reject the goods purchased before payment is tendered. When your supermarket purchases those goods from the produce wholesaler, you can bet that they inspect the goods before they pay for them and that they purchase only the amount they want. Why should it be different for you as the consumer?
ReplyDeleteNo conundrum, my dear. Of course, it is okay to separate the bannanas. I would never have thought otherwise. Grape sampling is quite acceptable as well, as long as it is a sample. I am quite certain your lovely troop and you are not devouring each one in sight. Inspection is key before purchase. Groceries should be accepted as any other purchase. There is a quality that is expected for monies paid.
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ReplyDeleteHmmm, wondering what the distinction is between grapes, bananas, and any other grocery item, especially those sold by weight measured at checkout. There's a certain amount of risk that the buyer assumes in any purchase; most stores these days do a great job of quality control, but we live in an imperfect world.
ReplyDeleteAnd then there's always the tired old "if everyone did it" argument. The two comments above seem to be making a distinction in terms of scale of the items (grapes or oranges, or other size comparisons). I wonder how much loss from grape tasters the grocery stores have to roll into higher prices.
I didn't know until recently that white or green grapes are going to be more sour than red or black grapes just by their nature anyway; and red bell peppers are sweeter than green ones; for whatever that may be worth. ;)
I used to have a cookbook that had guidelines for choosing good produce and it said something about what to look for as far as visual appearance. I'll look around here and see if i can find it.
Re my first comment removed - train of thought hadn't fully arrived at the station yet!
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