And where were these rebranded Sumo's? We only saw Sumo's this year for $4-5/lb nearly everywhere we looked. Were these rebranded things really Sumo's or did they just look like Sumo's.
I did see something that looked like a Sumo call a 'dekopon' citrus at major grocers on the east coast, but they were maybe $1/lb cheaper as best and not as good or large as one with a Sumo sticker. They were more tart and not as an intense flavor.
It's my understanding that the variety has existed for a long time in Japan and Sumo is just one specific branded citrus sub-variety from California.
They were rebranded as Satsumas but had no sticker, in Southern California at an Arabic grocer.
They were just as large, sweet, seedless, and easy to peel as the Sumos with identical appearance. This is the fourth or fifth year in a row that they've had them at a deep discount and I started eating them when Trader Joes first introduced them at $4/piece so there was definitely a delay before they appeared at other stores. Trader Joes tends to get them a few weeks earlier than the other store so I usually compare them every year.
I don't know if they're actually Sumos or not but they're just as sweet and identical in every other way. It might be a pretty obvious cross so once the farm that made and copyrighted the Sumo name, everyone else figured it out too but they can't sell it as Sumos because that's a registered trademark. I.e. these guys, which don't look like any other Satsuma I've ever seen or found online (real satsumas with stickers are in stock right now at one of my stores): https://paradisenursery.com/product/satsuma-mandarin-trees/
I didn't realize that Sumos were from California. The company that grows them could also just be dumping excess inventory in the local market without stickers to maintain their brand.
I did see something that looked like a Sumo call a 'dekopon' citrus at major grocers on the east coast, but they were maybe $1/lb cheaper as best and not as good or large as one with a Sumo sticker. They were more tart and not as an intense flavor.
It's my understanding that the variety has existed for a long time in Japan and Sumo is just one specific branded citrus sub-variety from California.