| From what I can discern, the "jumbo tosai" from the better breeders are their better tosai that got the best over-winter care, but did not make the cut for a second mudpond summer. So, for those breeders, the "jumbo tosai" gives the consumer some higher level of quality than compared to that breeder's other tosai. The advantage is that it is a tosai the breeder thought highly about at one point. If that breeder's nisai sell for less than the "jumbo tosai" (which seems to be the case oftentimes), buy the nisai!
...Then there are the ones that seem to be random selections given warm water over the winter and priced above nisai...avoid buying anything from such a source.
But, it seems to me that if you come across a Sakai or Torazo jumbo tosai in May that is priced well below nisai pricing, and you otherwise like what you see, it may well be the best quality available for your pocketbook. Unfortunately, it also seems to me that these get marked up to nisai and higher levels when the breeder clearly did not think it was worth space in the mudpond.
On the other hand, last year Quality Koi/Nisei Koi Farm released some of its 'jumbo tosai' (10" or so... not the 14+" some hothouse "jumbos" are). They were placed for sale with the idea that the fish would stay in their mudponds for the summer. These were selected from among their better tosai to be raised to nisai before being offered. A different twist on the "jumbo" term.
It's the old refrain: Buy the fish, not the breeder... and not the label. |