How to pick good beets

Beets are in at the greenmarket. I'm often asked what the difference is between the beets. Here's my take on Alex Paffenroth's many colored beets:

Red -- classic beet flavor, beautiful deep jewel color, stains your hands and clothing. Sweetest.
Golden -- classic beet flavor without the staining properties, beautiful mustard color, very nice paired with the red, equally sweet.
White Sugar -- beets used to make Spreckels sugar, these beets have a bit of a more flat, sweet flavor, less tang than the red and golden beets, more of a woody flavor. Nice and sweet, but can oxidize and turn black if left out.
Chioggia Striped Beets -- striped pink and white inside, pink skin on the outside. Very pretty, but not as sweet as the others; in fact, there was a hint of bitterness in my bunch. My least favorite of the 4.

My favorite method for cooking beets: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Scrub your beets well and trim the long root end. Pierce each beet several times with the tines of a fork. Place beets in a foil packet with olive oil, salt, pepper, and a few cloves of smashed garlic. Roast for 45 min-1hr or until beets are tender.