Tart Cherries: Where Can I Buy

Elias walked to the shelf. There they were. Not the bloated, purple-black cherries of the supermarket, but bright, fire-engine red globes suspended in clear nectar.

"If you're ever in a real pinch," Marty called out as Elias brought two jars to the counter, "check the freezer aisle at the big co-ops. They flash-freeze them right off the tree. Keeps that zing better than anything." Elias tapped the glass. "These will do just fine." "Making a pie?" Marty asked, ringing him up. where can i buy tart cherries

He pushed open the creaky door. The air smelled of damp earth and cedar. Elias walked to the shelf

"Looking for the sour stuff?" a voice rasped from behind a wall of honey jars. "If you're ever in a real pinch," Marty

The neon sign outside "Marty’s Produce" flickered, casting a buzzing red glow over Elias’s boots. He had been to four grocery stores already. Each time, he asked the same question. Each time, he got the same shrug.

Marty chuckled and pointed a calloused finger toward the back corner. "I don't stock the fresh ones this late, but I keep the 'baking gold' in the glass jars. Grown in Traverse City. Packed in their own juice. No sugar added."

"Not the same," Elias would mutter, adjusted his glasses. He wasn't looking for a snack. He was looking for the sharp, electric tang of a Montmorency—the true tart cherry. His grandmother’s pie recipe didn't ask for "sweet." It demanded a flavor that made your jaw hinge ache.