Gaucho Bean
Carol Deppe grew this seed for us, and here is her description: "Argentine heirloom I obtained from Abundant Life Seed Foundation back in the 1980s, and have maintained since. It’s my favorite heirloom bean variety and is one parent of all the P. vulgaris varieties I’ve bred. It’s a very tight bush type. Maturity is about the same as the classic early Northeastern heirlooms Jacob’s Cattle and Soldier. However, Gaucho and its derivative White Candle Gaucho yield higher than any other bean I’ve grown, up to a little over 20 lbs per 100 row feet, in spite of the suboptimal amounts of sun in spring and cold nights right through summer in Oregon. Gaucho also dries down unusually fast—about 10 days from completely green pods and plants (that aren’t harmed by rain or irrigation) to completely dry plants and pods (safely in the barn). It reliably finishes in mid-August in Willamette Valley—conveniently before the fall rains. Gaucho looks similar to many other gold beans such as Brown Swedish. However, the other gold varieties I have tasted have a mild flavor. Gaucho has a full-bodied rich flavor that is excellent served by itself with just a little salt, pepper and butter. It also complements the other ingredients in vegetable, chicken, or turkey soups, stews, or curries. Gaucho is a sister variety to White Candle Gaucho. "