Im definitely a fresh over canned type of a guy. In fact, Im still working off my tomatoes from last summer ( which i froze, so Im not sure they count as fresh, but I think you got the idea). I was just curious to try the San Marzano since Ive heard so much talk about it, feeling as if i was missing out on something. Honestly, I never saw them in the stores I go to. But, there is an Italian grocery store that I occasionally go to. So, I thought Id see if they had them there. Sure enough they did, and i picked up a few cans out of curiosity. Dont get me wrong, they were fine. I just didnt notice a significant enough difference to me ( and my goat-like tastebuds) to make the extra trip each time I needed canned tomatoes. Ive had some brands of canned tomatoes that were just plain awful. And others that were comparible to those of San Marzano. As far as the fresh Jersey tomatoes. I lived in Philly a few years. Got my produce from the Italian market , you know, the one in south Philly where Rocky ran through on his way to the stairs of the art museum. There was a woman there from Jersey selling her Jersey tomatoes. Very protective of them, she yelled at me if I attempted to grab one and pick it up ( they were sold by the basket there, so couldnt touch, just had to grab a basket and pay.
larry