Wikipedia Article About Vine tomatoes on Wikipedia Recently, stores have begun selling "tomatoes on the vine" which are ripened still connected to a piece of vine. These tend to have more flavor (at a price premium) than artificially-ripened tomatoes, but still may not be the equal of local garden produce. Also relatively recently, slow-ripening cultivars of tomato have been developed by crossing a non-ripening variety with ordinary tomato cultivars. Cultivars were selected whose fruits have a long shelf life and at least reasonable flavor.