Jack wrote:

I used to like sardines (except when packed in water), but in the past few
years I seem to buy more cans with bad tasting fish. Brands range from
Bumble Bee, Chicken Of The Sea and my favorite, Brunswick, packed in oil.

More and more, they taste old, overly fishy or just plain wrong. I seem to
be throwing away a third because of the gag reflex. Might this be related
to the general decline in ocean stocks, or a problem with freshness
procedures? Do some people just lose their tolerance for canned fish over
time?

Hmmm? I hope that's not true (the quality thing or the tolerance
thing). Although I haven't had sardines in ages I used to love them.
So now I'll be worried about trying them again. I don't think I
ever bought any of the brands you mentioned, though. They were always
some odd brand I never heard of. When did Bumble Bee, Chicken of
the Sea, et al., start selling sardines? The ones I would get were
usually made in Norway or something like that.

Kate

Jack

----== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Unrestricted-Secure Usenet News==----
http://www.newsfeeds.com The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! 120,000+ Newsgroups
----= East and West-Coast Server Farms - Total Privacy via Encryption =----


--
Kate Connally
“If I were as old as I feel, I’d be dead already.”
Goldfish: “The wholesome snack that smiles back,
Until you bite their heads off.”
What if the hokey pokey really *is* what it's all about?

Jack wrote:
I used to like sardines (except when packed in water), but in the past few
years I seem to buy more cans with bad tasting fish. Brands range from
Bumble Bee, Chicken Of The Sea and my favorite, Brunswick, packed in oil.

More and more, they taste old, overly fishy or just plain wrong. I seem to
be throwing away a third because of the gag reflex. Might this be related
to the general decline in ocean stocks, or a problem with freshness
procedures? Do some people just lose their tolerance for canned fish over
time?

Jack

this from a Sardine Addict (?)


The Great Sardine Taste-off – best canned sardines

Message: After trying 30 types of canned sardines here are my thoughts:

- Sardines caught near Portugal or Spain are the best with a meaty tuna
flavor
- Italian grocery stores carry the best brands of Portuguese sardines
(in my area anyway)
- Olive oil is the best medium for sardines
- Really skip those flavored with tomato sauce or mustard
- Read that ingredient list there is no reason for anything but fish,
oil/water or salt


from Chowhound.com : http://tinyurl.com/efkqh

Steve Wertz wrote:

On Tue, 11 Apr 2006 12:13:26 -0700, Mark Thorson
wrote:

The Savon drugstore chain sells a brand of
smoked sardines from Riga (Latvia) which
is very good and very cheap. I don't
remember the brand name, but they come
in a gold-colored round can.

Riga Smoked Sprats. They come about 20 to a can and
cost under a buck. They are excellent. They come in
thin but wide, black and gold cans.

Actually, "Smoked Riga Sprats in oil".
I paid 99 cents a can, yesterday.

Imported by:

International Delicacies Inc.
2500 Atlas Rd., Ste. C
Richmond, CA 94806-1170

Phone: 510.669.2444
Fax: 510.669.2446

Steve Wertz wrote:

On Fri, 14 Apr 2006 12:27:04 -0700, Mark Thorson wrote:

Steve Wertz wrote:

Riga Smoked Sprats. They come about 20 to a can and
cost under a buck. They are excellent. They come in
thin but wide, black and gold cans.

Actually, "Smoked Riga Sprats in oil".
I paid 99 cents a can, yesterday.

Since the background on the label is black, and the printing
is white (or gold?), take a black magic marker and color in
the "sp" in "Sprats" (and again in the ingredient list).

You now have "Smoked Riga rats". It makes a great
conversation piece.

Oh! So _you're_ the guy who did that!

I didn't notice until I brought them home. :-(

"Mark Thorson" wrote in message
...
Steve Wertz wrote:

On Tue, 11 Apr 2006 12:13:26 -0700, Mark Thorson
wrote:

The Savon drugstore chain sells a brand of
smoked sardines from Riga (Latvia) which
is very good and very cheap. I don't
remember the brand name, but they come
in a gold-colored round can.

Riga Smoked Sprats. They come about 20 to a can and
cost under a buck. They are excellent. They come in
thin but wide, black and gold cans.

Actually, "Smoked Riga Sprats in oil".
I paid 99 cents a can, yesterday.

Imported by:

International Delicacies Inc.
2500 Atlas Rd., Ste. C
Richmond, CA 94806-1170

Phone: 510.669.2444
Fax: 510.669.2446

Somebody must have been damn hungry to ever think sardines were food.
Probably the son of the guy who first ate mushrooms, and the cousin of the
guy who first ate shrimp. My parents, being from Latvia, both eat the
things, and were quite happy when the Latvian brand became available in the
States. To be polite, I have tried them a few times, but find they taste
nasty- like salty strips of rubber. Only way I can tolerate them is on Real
Latvian black bread (which is to die for), with horseradish on the side, and
a vodka chaser. Lots of vodka.....

aem sends...

Steve Wertz wrote:

On Fri, 14 Apr 2006 12:27:04 -0700, Mark Thorson wrote:

Riga Smoked Sprats. They come about 20 to a can and
cost under a buck. They are excellent. They come in
thin but wide, black and gold cans.

Actually, "Smoked Riga Sprats in oil".
I paid 99 cents a can, yesterday.

http://www.russianfoods.com/showroom/product01407/vendor003E7/default.asp

These are the ones I was thinking of. Probably the
same as yours. I used to be able to get them for
$.60/can in Santa Cruz. Here in Austin they're $.85.

That looks like the same thing, though the label
is different (larger font for the name of
the product). It may be more recent production
than what Savon is selling. The can is certainly
the same style.

I was about to say there couldn't be two smoked
sprats canneries in Riga producing similar
products, but that's happened in the past.
Sometimes when one company creates a successful
product, another company will open up in the
same town doing a copycat product. That's
happened lots of times, and not always with
food products.

Rusty wrote

Have you noticed canned tuna? It has gone from a solid chunk of tuna to
tuna soup. Some store brands still have canned tuna that is mostly a
solid chunk, but the so called "name brands" are not worth buying.

I've also noticed this, used to have really dig the meat out of the
can and break it up thoroughly with a fork before making a tuna
sandwich but nowadays, it like buying a can of shredded tuna.

I'll also add that something similar seems to be happening with
smelt. I hadn't had smelt in years and decided to buy a smelt
dinner this past Good Friday from a local rib/chicken/fish joint
that has always provided a great product.

I opened the foam carton when I got home and thought they had
mistakenly given me a load of french fries instead of smelt. They
were tiny (2-2.5") with barely any meat on them, while the ones
I had gotten years ago were at least 4" long.

ameijers wrote:

Somebody must have been damn hungry to ever think sardines were food.
Probably the son of the guy who first ate mushrooms, and the cousin of the
guy who first ate shrimp. My parents, being from Latvia, both eat the
things, and were quite happy when the Latvian brand became available in the
States. To be polite, I have tried them a few times, but find they taste
nasty- like salty strips of rubber. Only way I can tolerate them is on Real
Latvian black bread (which is to die for), with horseradish on the side, and
a vodka chaser. Lots of vodka.....

You seem to be describing a brand unknown to me. The ubiquitous Riga
smoked sprats are not at all salty and not at all rubbery. They have a
fall-apart texture.

Victor

"Victor Sack" wrote in message
. ..
ameijers wrote:

Somebody must have been damn hungry to ever think sardines were food.
Probably the son of the guy who first ate mushrooms, and the cousin of
the
guy who first ate shrimp. My parents, being from Latvia, both eat the
things, and were quite happy when the Latvian brand became available in
the
States. To be polite, I have tried them a few times, but find they taste
nasty- like salty strips of rubber. Only way I can tolerate them is on
Real
Latvian black bread (which is to die for), with horseradish on the side,
and
a vodka chaser. Lots of vodka.....

You seem to be describing a brand unknown to me. The ubiquitous Riga
smoked sprats are not at all salty and not at all rubbery. They have a
fall-apart texture.

Truth be told, it has been several years- mayhaps I am remembering the brand
they bought before the ones from 'back home' were available here.

aem sends...

On Sun, 16 Apr 2006 12:16:50 -0700, Mark Thorson wrote:

I was about to say there couldn't be two smoked
sprats canneries in Riga producing similar
products, but that's happened in the past.
Sometimes when one company creates a successful
product, another company will open up in the
same town doing a copycat product. That's
happened lots of times, and not always with
food products.

There's only one company that produces sprats like this. This particular
compnay supposedly has guided tours.

-sw