Cherry season is a highpoint of the food year. In the U.S., it is mainly June and July, although seasons are not as strict as they used to be. Markets are dominated by dark red Bing cherries and, less commonly, red-tinged creamy yellow Rainier cherries. Royal Ann cherries are similar to Rainier, in fact some people claim they are indistinguishable. Royal Ann cherries are made into maraschino cherries. Yes, yellow cherries are the starting point for the glowing red entries in fruit cocktails and exotic drinks.

Rainier and Bing cherries.

I discovered Index cherries in a farmer’s market recently. (Care to sample some Indices?) The ones I encountered were browner than Bing cherries and a little less sweet, but still sweet enough. An Australian growers website gives a good rundown on Bing and Index cherries, and other varieties of red cherries. They show Index cherries as bright red.

Tart cherries are more difficult to find in markets. They are especially good in pies, where the tartness survives the cooking in sugar. Our food index will point you to web sources of tart cherries as well as the other kinds, but cherries are plentiful, and cheaper, in ,ost local markets.

So what is the highlight of the cherry season? I tend to the Rainier, but I cannot fault any of the varieties.