The Alphonso

Jaidev Sharma, February 13, 2026

There are mangoes and there is the Alphonso- the King of Mangoes. Who made it the King? Is it really the best mango? I never heard of it? What is the whole deal?

It is the King’s followers who make a King. And so is the case here. This mango is the native of Maharashtra, India, in particular the Konkan west coast of India. The people of this region are whole heartedly, devotedly dedicated to the King. To them mango-is-alphonso and alphonso-is-mango. When the reign of Alphonso ends, then they reluctantly choose an alternative, such as a cousin of alphonso- the Mancurad or Payri or the Queen of mangoes, Kesar. 

This poses a question to the rest of mango loving humanity- is their devotion well placed? Is this a legitimate king? One thing is certain- this is certainly the most popular mango. It outsells all other varieties 3:1. This is in spite of the fact that Alphonso is one of the most sensitive variety, highly prone to spoilage and also among the costliest. This certainly legitimizes the king !! 

Another trait of a legitimate King is that others want to emulate and get a piece of the legitimacy, but that is not easy !! Alphonso is grown not only in the Konkan region, but in other regions of India as well-. We now have the Dharwad Alphonso, the Valsad Alphonso, the Andhra Alphonso, the Kerela Alphonso etc.. In the past 100 years, Alphonso has spread to many other countries, such as Malawi, Egypt, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Brazil and Colombia, where farmers grow the fruit with all their passion. Enthusiasts are also trying to grow it in California and Florida !! Everyone wants to grow the Alphonso, but it is difficult to grow, leave alone get it to taste as good !! 

So how old is the Alphonso variety- it is certainly more than 500 years old getting this name from the Portuguese General based in Goa Aphonso de Albuguerque. Garcia de Orta (Portuguese botanist) based in Mumbai (erstwhile Bombay) mentions this mango as famous and better than the mango grown in Goa, so this mango was already known, possibly by another name. In the local region, the mango is called Hapuz or Hapoos and could have existed for thousands of years- mango does find a mention in many of the Indian scriptures and all parts of a mango tree are considered holy !! There are many instances where folks have told me that the alphonso is called by another name in their local region in India and abroad, but on closer inspection the mango turned out to be a different variety. As a rule of thumb, if the mango is not called Alphonso or Hapuz, it is not the real thing (you can trust me on this more than any AI platform). And among the many versions of the King Alphonso, the Alphonso which come from the Ratnagiri and Devgad regions is the best- the King among Kings !! These mangoes are truly the real deal – everything else is a compromise…

What is so great about the Alphonso? The taste profile of alphonso is complex and it covers a wide range of complex flavors. Alphonso is more than what how good you can imagine a fruit on earth to be. Nature gave Alphonso to humans so that they can be complete and achieve salvation by the simple act of consuming a fruit. Alphonso also has the ability to put you in your place. No matter what your stature is, when you cut an Alphonso and it turns out to be either spoilt or spongy inside, you instantly realize that  nature truly treats everyone equally !! Every once in a while we are assumed to possess superpowers such as causing this to happen in the first place. But if a fruit is not built to realize its full potential, it will fall short in some way and no one can prevent it. We certainly try to filter out such fruit and prevent it from reaching you !!

Is it the sweetest- no it isn’t. This is not the sweetest mango that we import- that will be the Chausa.  Is it the biggest- no it isn’t. Infact, a medium sized alphonso is more flavorful and has less imperfections. Is it the most expensive- no it isn’t, that distinction is enjoyed by its cousin, the Mancurad mango from Goa. Is it the most reliable- no it isn’t. Infact, it is one of the most unreliable of the varieties and hides many flaws inside the fruit- by one study, 30 percent of the alphonso suffers from sponginess of the seed. This condition develops when the seed absorbs nutrients from the surrounding tissue in a bid to germinate- something like the seed eating the mango before we do. Unfortunately, we get to know only when we cut it. Still, Alphonso is the most sought after mango.

When a human tastes a good mango and wakes up to the possibility that he or she has lived a life in ignorance without knowing that a fruit as tasty as the mango existed right here, the quest to find the best mango begins. For some humans, the realization is different- they have had a good mango and know that this is an awesome fruit, but they suddenly realize that there are other varieties which are equally good or better. After all, why look around when you are already satiated with goodness locally !! This is when they hear about the Alphonso and its fame. But they cannot find it anywhere- why? Because they grow in limited regions and only experts can grow them properly. In addition, the King needs royal treatment and can throw a tantrum any time- this level of sensitivity can become difficult to handle. 

During the Alphonso season, the whole planet is trying to get the Alphonso from Ratnagiri and Devgad, including the locals. The best of the fruit just vanishes in no time. We use all our contacts and our ability trying to get this fruit to you- if we blink, we also miss the best !! That is where we try hard to get folks to order early so that we get a chance to secure the best fruit for you. And that is only the start of the long journey which begins with you placing your order. We still have to find your fruit and the fruit still has to travel thousands of miles, survive a plane load of logistics, fly past a mixture of logistics, economic and political hurdles before we even receive the King and start to pay our respects !!