The caseillier is a hybrid variety obtained by crossing between the blackcurrant and the gooseberry. Very resistant to diseases, this stocky, vigorous, non-thorny shrub measures approximately 1.50 m in all directions. Its flowering takes place in April-May, a little more spectacular than those of blackcurrants, on 2-year-old branches, followed, in July-August, by tangy berries, as big as gooseberries, very fragrant.
Their smooth skin hides pleasant flesh. The deciduous foliage is slightly fragrant. It is easy to find a place for it in the garden, in a mini-hedge, in a clump, associated with gooseberry and blackcurrant bushes, or in islands, in groups of three or five. It trains quite easily, thanks to its flexible branches which can be led onto a wall, a trellis or a fence. It can also be installed in a large container.
Almost non-existent on merchants’ stalls!
As mechanical harvesting is almost impossible on the rack, as with all small fruits, we almost never come across racks on merchants’ stalls. If you want to eat it every year, all you have to do is plant this hardly demanding shrub: it needs sun and good garden soil, enriched with compost when planting. On the other hand, annual pruning is necessary to have fruit each year.
At the end of each winter, practice rejuvenation pruning by eliminating the oldest branches, aerating the center of the clump so that air and sun can penetrate the heart of the plant. Ten to twelve branches are ideal for forming a productive bush.
Delicious and healthy berries
The picking takes place over a fortnight, depending on the year, the varieties and the region between the beginning of July and the end of August. The fruit should be tender to the touch, but not mushy. Isn’t the best way to know their maturity to taste?
Caseille is precious, for its vitamin C content, and for its tangy flavor, between gooseberry and blackcurrant with a hint of redcurrant. It can be cooked like its two parents: in jam, in jelly, in pastries, in crumble, in sorbets, in liqueur, in coulis. A small handful in the fruit salad transforms it, giving it a festive feel. Sprinkling a mixture of raw vegetables brings color, texture and a particular taste. As a cooked dish, it goes wonderfully with duck breast. It goes well with vanilla, almond and honey…
Some varieties, to stagger the harvests
By opting for these three racks, you have fruit for almost two months. Even if they are self-fertile, they will be more productive in good company, among themselves, but also with an abundance of honey-producing flowers installed around them.
– ‘Anita’ is the first to ripen, at the beginning of July. Large, dark blue, fragrant fruits.
– ‘Josta’ produces large, very fragrant black-brown fruits, ripe just after ‘Anita’.
– ‘Rita’ offers berries with a fruity flavor from the end of July to mid-August
