BY KIM ATIENZA
Afraid you are losing your sense of smell? Known scientifically as anosmia, it is one of the first signs of contracting COVID-19.
I tried it out myself recently by sniffing a tray of mabolo fruit. Its strong, pungent (?) smell presents the best challenge to your nose, next only to durian.
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Did you know that mabolo is the fruit while its tree is better known as kamagong?
Kamagong is a tree of the genus Diospyros of ebony trees and persimmons.
It is a native Philippine tree whose wood is known for being very hard. Also known as ironwood, its sapwood is pinkish, while its heartwood is mottled with gray and is sometimes completely black.
There’s male and female tree. Wood from the male is harder, stronger.
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Mabolo is also called butter fruit, velvet apple, or velvet persimmon.
This fruit is “hairy” due to its furry skin. It belongs to the family of ebony trees and persimmons.
Eating mabolo and especially being fond of it, is an acquired taste. The fruit is best eaten cold, stored in a ref.
