Tarbais Beans

[Lamb Abbey Orchards]

http://www.frenchgardening.com/p/products/SEVE18.jpg

Two years ago I decided to attempt a traditional French cassoulet for New Years Eve dinner. The whole process was pretty foreign to me, but I bought a 'kit' of sorts from d'Artagnan (https://www.dartagnan.com/item.asp?item=KIT0902D) that made it straightforward. And I was shocked when it turned out to be remarkably good. What particularly intrigued me were the beans used. I read in a couple of places on the Net that the classic cassoulet bean is a hard to find old French shell bean known as a Tarbais [tar-BAY]. Oddly enough though, I can't find any US-based seed supplier that offers these seeds. Possibly Jere could be the first. This seems like the kind of thing that would be right up his alley.

You'll find a great description of these beans and ordering information here (http://www.frenchgardening.com/item.tmpl?SKU=SEVE18). It's a French company (www.frenchgardening.com) that charges way too much for them ($16 US for 4 oz PLUS an add'l $7 'handling' charge). But it may be one of the only ways to get good organic seeds for this wonderful bean.

I also discovered a French website that offers a ton of information about the history (http://www.haricot-tarbais.com/eng/historique.htm) and cultivation (http://www.haricot-tarbais.com/eng/culture.htm) of the Tarbais. They too offer the beans for sale, but only ones to be used for cooking. I doubt that they're viable.

Is anyone else out there familiar with this bean and aware of any US-based seed suppliers that offer it? Oddly enough, neither the Seed Savers Exchange (http://www.seedsavers.org), Seeds of Change (http://www.seedsofchange.com) , The Cook's Garden (http://www.cooksgarden.com) nor the Vermont Bean Seed Company (http://www.vermontbean.com) offer it. It seems bizarre to me that a bean with such a great culinary reputation would not have made its way into any US seed catalogs.

John

[Pharmerphil]

Actually john, I have had great luck planting seed sold packaged to cook.
Problem is, are you getting what you wanted, are they "true" or will you get some 'sports'.
The tarbais beans I last seen being raised was in North east Mo.
Hope Jere don't mind here, but here is a link to a seed company in Illinois, where the man I knew in Mo. got his seed. Sorry, I have no info on price, or shpping.
Tarbais Seed (http://www.woodlandfoods.com/new-products.html)

Good Luck, I hope this helps. :)

[Lamb Abbey Orchards]

Actually john, I have had great luck planting seed sold packaged to cook. Problem is, are you getting what you wanted, are they "true" or will you get some 'sports'.

Thanks Pharmer Phil. I wasn't aware of the source you referenced. Unfortunately, I've not had the same luck with planting Tarbais beans packaged for cooking. I'm guessing the beans had either been irradiated or were beyond their viability stage. It was frustrating.

I'd like to find a source for Tarbais beans here in the US that provides viable seeds for planting and will stand behind their viability and authenticity. If you should figure out where your friend got his seeds in IL, would you let me know? Thanks!

Happy New Year,

John

[Pharmerphil]

You're welcome. You must have missed the link, Click HERE (http://www.woodlandfoods.com/new-products.html)

[Lamb Abbey Orchards]

You're welcome. You must have missed the link, Click HERE (http://www.woodlandfoods.com/new-products.html)

Pharmer Phil:

I didn't miss the link. It just wasn't from a seed supplier. It was from a food purveyor. As I mentioned, I've had problems in the past trying to plant Tarbais beans using ones intended for human consumption. No one really knows how long they've been sitting in someone's warehouse and under what conditions.

Thanks though.

John

[Pharmerphil]

John, I apologize, I never even checked the link out! But he said thats where he got the seeds, just assumed it was a supplier... I will call him.

[Lamb Abbey Orchards]

Hi,

I googled "Tarbais" heirloom beans and I found it at www.frenchgardening.com. It costs a lot but you might find it worth it.

Lore:

Thanks. You're right on the money when you say 'it costs a lot.' The link you found is for the source I mentioned in my original post that is based in France and who charges way too much for their seeds. They want $16 US for a 4 oz packet of beans, plus an add'l $7 US handling charge. It's outrageous. A place like Baker Creek needs to bring these into the US and make them available at a reasonable cost.

I really appreciate you taking the time though. Happy New Year.

John

[Lamb Abbey Orchards]

John, I apologize, I never even checked the link out! But he said thats where he got the seeds, just assumed it was a supplier... I will call him.

Pharmer Phil:

If that's where your friend got viable seeds, it may be worth a shot. The Tarbais beans I purchased for cassoulet were dead as a doorknob so I didn't want to waste the time trying to grow beans from another supplier that were intended for cooking. But it may be a viable option in this case, excuse the pun : )

Thanks,

John

[Lamb Abbey Orchards]

Lamb Abbey,

I think you missed my reply. www.frenchgardening.com is a gardening site that sells Tarbais beans for planting.

Lore:

I think you must've missed my reply. www.frenchgardening.com is the French-based seed supplier I referenced in my original posting that charges way too much for their seeds. My original post was made with the hopes of identifying a US-based alternative to www.frenchgardening.com that doesn't charge an arm and a leg for their seeds.

Maybe Jere will consider adding these beans to Baker Creek.

Thanks again, Lore,

John

[Lamb Abbey Orchards]

Sorry, I probably should read the posts a little more closely. Have you tried the Kokopelli Association, the french seed-savers exchange. They stock Tarbais. I don't know how much the shipping would be.

Lore:

I wasn't even aware of Kokopelli. I'll look into it. Thanks for the lead!

John