I don't disciminate against hybrids. Celebrity is a good reliable tomato. I've grown it the past two years and have been happy with it. Decent production, decnt flavor. I've grown both Super Sweet 100's and Yellow Pears and have had cherry tomatoes coming out of my ears! So many, in fact, that friends and family members refused to take them after a while! I still have some in the freezer from last year! I've grown Bandywines in the past too. I don't feel they live up to their reputation. They were not prolific (maybe 2-3 tomatoes off each plant) and did not taste any better than Big Beef.

That's my two cents! I'm sure others will have other opinions.

I agree with Booberry--Brandywines don't live up to expectations. I grew them two years here in central Texas and got very few tomatoes. I love yellow pears, and have yellow and red in this year. They are prolific! All the experienced gardeners around here put in Celebrity as their "reliance" tomato--you can rely on it to do well.
Where did you get such a great variety of heirlooms? If they are being sold in Tyler, I just may make the two-hour trip next spring!

Of the ones you listed, I have Brandywine and Blk Krim. Brandywine is a beautiful plant, but I have three of them and I also have exactly 3 fruit so far. That's on one plant. The other two are getting bigger but not producing diddly. Since there are other potato-leaved varieties that producelarger yields of similar fruits, I won't be growing it again. At least not here (Houston).

I have two BK's and they're producing very well. No ripe ones yet, but a lot of set. Recommended.

Others that I haven't tasted, but am growing and setting a lot of fruit:

Arkansas Traveler
Boxcar Willie
Cherokee Purple
Lemon Boy

Hi..not that far from you ( Love your Greenberg Turkeys!).
I used to be an Heirloom snob, but I am not anymore so don't worry! I have about 70% heirs rest Hys. I am at the point where I think if it comes with a white plastic tag it is HY. If it is handwritten or wood stick it is Heir.So anyway...Cherokee Purple and brandywine are low producers for me, but they do taste great! But if you can find in your area: JD's Early Texas black...buy as many as you can!
Tons of yummy maroon tomatoes.Carmello is early and amazing.Dona, if you can find is awesome too. Juanne Flamme, Goliath,Sugary,Sugar Shack, Isis Candy, Oaxacan Pink, Kellogs Breakfast,Limony,Banana Legs. Celebrity is so great at being reliable/giant tomatoes.I am just not into white tomatoes, they sort of creep me out!Just try and find transplants grown in the South. I have posted on other threads about how Chef Jeff is taking over down here at all corporate nurseries. Bonnie is taking over big box. Won't buy either.

I'm not big on the idea of white tomatoes, either, but I don't have anything against Cheff Jeff. The ones I encounter are generally strong, healthy plants and have done well for me. All things being equal, I'd start all mine from seed, but I only the the time and materials for a limited number.

I'm also growing two Kellogg's Bkfst (from seed) this time, which I was really excited about, but they've been sloooow growers and I'm not sure they've set any fruit. I think there may be two, finally, but I'm about to go check.

I have grown all but the brandywine and hybrids from seed that I purchased online. All my friends have really benifited from this expermient this year. I put the whites in becauase I am fond of anything sweet and I thought they might be cool. I have really high hopes for pineapple but really I am just very excited about this whole project! My confession is that I do love tomatoes even though they have all come from the store.

I tried to grow last year but my husband and son murdered my garden with round-up, the weedeater and the lawnmover. My son stated "i did not see that entire strawberry bed!" Yea but the wheel marks gave him away! Then you put in the raccoons and other various garden killers including my weeding kitty that thinks squash plants do not belong in a garden! I am doing this to relax? LOL. I have even found dog prints and I don't even have a dog!
Kat

Yeah, sometimes you just gotta bite the bullet and put a fence around your garden area.

If you've only ever had store-bought tomatoes, you're in for a pleasant surprise. I've never grown Pineapple, but I've tasted it and it's fantastic. It actually tastes like citrus-y fruit, tho not really like a pineapple, lol.

I wrote a really long post going thru each of the varieties you're growing and made lots of comments, both specific and general and then it wouldn't post. Sigh.

I may work up the energy later today to try and redo it. Triple Sigh. And maybe I won't. LOL

Carolyn

It probably isn't too accurate to compare my Zone 5 with you in Zone 8, but I will say that I am a fan of Celebrity. Lots of nice blemish-free tomatoes. Good for eating fresh and canning. Our conditions are normally very wet June, followed by very dry July/early August, humid from May-Sept. Many varieties blight, but Celebrity is pretty resistant. Brandywine is okay. I probably get 3-4 large fruit and a few smaller from each plant. They are a slow grower, bearing later, in early August, for about a month only. I'm not a taste person, so I won't give an opinion on flavor. I haven't grown Yellow Pear; I usually grow a yellow grape type from Park's called Ildi, that is very prolific and folks I know who are more into tomato flavor say has better flavor.

Chef Jeff, the label name used by Bert Hybels nurseries, are great plants ... superior to Bonnie Plant Farms at least in our area.

Chef Jeff was the first around here to offer so-called heirloom tomatoes, and was where I got Cherokee Purple, Black Krim, Brandywine and Caspian Pink the first year I grew so-called heirloom tomatoes. All the plants were top quality and productive.

Our conditions are not as rough on tomatoes as Texas conditions, so I'm not recommending any particular variety to the original poster. When I visit my daughter in Austin, I always notice certain varieties not available or commonly grown up here. And I always bring a few back. Last year I grew Merced, but it wasn't available this year in Austin; so I brought back a C-Tex plant. Bradley and Arkansas Traveller are two I see commonly for sale in Texas that also have done very well for me in mid-summer heat here. Just some observations ... not recommendations.

Bill

In the Dallas area, I've grown from your list Brandywine, Black Crim and Mr Stripey. Mr S was a bust producing maybe 3 fruit for me, with a bland taste. Never again. Brandywines are low produers too often 3-7 fruit in a year, but the taste is exquisite! Black Crim did nicely for me. However, I didn't like the taste as well as I do for Cherokee Purple, which also produced a little better for me. I went from 1 to 3 C.P.s this year as it was my favorite last year. I think you have sandy soils out there, unlike our clay bombs in DFW, so your results will likley be very different. Good luck.

My two cents:

Pineapple and Brandywines are both tasty but low production.

Amana Orange had great flavor and medium production.

Black Krim has great flavor and is very prolific.

Mr. Stripey is very prolific but has bland flavor.

I haven't tried the others.

^ Black Krim's doing great for me. About third in production behind Boxcar Willie and Arkansas Traveler. It's a definite grow-again.

I'm from a different area so will suggest you try several and find those that work for you in your climate and soil. I grew Pineapple last year and it did well here. Good tasting and also production. Branywine for me is like several here have stated. No production. After 7 years with a top of 3 fruit dropped it last year. Trying the real Sudduth and also the Glick's strain this year. Hopefully one of them will do better.
As for reliable ones I've found here. Goliath hybrid, Chapman, Texas Star, Heartland hybrid, Bonnies original, Flammee', Kellog's Breakfast(very good flavor and excellent production), Vintage wine, Florida Pink and Porterhouse hybrid. I personally don't care for Celebrity but you might so try it. There is several more I could list but like I said what works for you will probably be completely different. JD

It's been a few years since I've grown tomatoes, but oddly enough my best producer was Mountain Princess. It was a bit of a surprise as it's from a cooler climate, but it was more prolific than those we chose that were supposed to take the heat. Great taste, too. My seeds now are several years old, but MP is one that I will try to germinate next year. My original supplier (heirloomtomatoes.net) no longer carries them. I look forward to hearing your favorites of the ones you're growing.

As can be seen I garden in zone 6, specifically in west central PA and a 2nd larger garden in east central OH.

I have a cousin who is an avid gardener in the Houston area.
We have traded seeds over the years, but in recent times not so much. We discovered, particularly with tomatoes, that the varieties that did well for one location just did not perform to expectations in the other area.

There were only a few exceptions that I can recall (I'm
focusing on heirlooms in particular). They were:
German Johnson
A large beefsteak from southern Illinois (I call it Lil's Favorite)
Pruden's Purple (Evidently yielded better in zone 6)

I'll give you folks in Texas a big hurrah on your opinion about Brandywine; the fact is it has never yielded much better for me up here in cold country and I'll state straight out that from a flavor standpoint there are a number of other varieties that are just as pleasing to me.
However, nobody has ever given me awards for sophistication
or admired my discriminating taste buds! In spite of all that I manage, somehow, to just muckle on out there in the garden day by day.