"D24 is the gateway durian, everyone thinks that's the ceiling." That reply turned up on X this week, during a Token2049 conversation about where to eat durian in Singapore, and it is a fair description of how a lot of people eat. They find D24, they like it, and they stop there. This guide is for the moment after that: which durian varieties after D24 are worth trying, in what order, and what each one adds that D24 does not. The short version is that D24 teaches you to like durian, and the next three varieties teach you why people argue about it.
Why D24 is the gateway
D24 earned its old title, Sultan, when it was the most prestigious durian you could buy. One variety guide in this week's research calls it a parent of later varieties, which is why so much of today's premium tier has D24 somewhere in its background. A Malaysian food explainer describes its flavour as sweet and mildly bitter, with a creamy, smooth texture, and notes it is often used in desserts and pastries. A Singapore seller points to its "gan-bao" texture, the kind that melts in the mouth.
All of that makes D24 an ideal first durian. It is friendly. The bitterness is there but gentle, the texture is easy, and nothing about it surprises you. That is exactly why it works as a gateway and exactly why it is not the ceiling. Once you know you like the basic durian experience, the interesting question is what happens when you turn up one dial at a time.
Durian varieties after D24: a tasting ladder
The most useful way to move on from D24 is to change one thing at a time, so you can tell what you are tasting. The same X thread that started this, posted by a Singapore durian fan during Token2049 week, gives a neat map of the next rungs.
Step one: Musang King, for more cream and depth. The fan describes Musang King as "creamy and tastes more on the sweet side". Singapore sellers in the research describe the best Mao Shan Wang as creamy and rich "with a bitter complexity", or as having a "bittersweet complexity". If D24 is mild, Musang King is the same idea with more of everything: richer flesh, more sweetness up front, and a bitter finish that lingers. It is the natural next step because it feels familiar but fuller.
Step two: Black Thorn, for a side-by-side test. The same fan calls Black Thorn "quite similar to musang king imo". That makes it the ideal third durian, because the comparison is the point. Eat a pod of each and you start noticing the differences that regular eaters talk about. A fan thread on actor Cheng Lei's recent Malaysia vlog made the same move without meaning to: he reportedly finished one pod of Musang King and one pod of Black Thorn. One pod of each is a sensible way to taste them too.
Step three: XO, for pungency. The fan describes XO as having "a slightly more pungent and rich taste". This is the rung where durian stops being dessert and becomes something closer to an acquired taste. If you enjoyed the bitter edge on Musang King and want more of it, XO is where to go. If you did not, stay a rung lower; there is no prize for climbing.
The same thread also names Butter Queen as a favourite. Treat it as a variety to ask your seller about once you know which of the three above you prefer.
How to taste them without wasting fruit
Order small. A whole fruit of a variety you have never tried is a big commitment, and the point of the ladder is comparison, not volume. Two or three varieties in small portions on the same evening will teach you more than one large fruit of a single kind.
Taste in order, mildest first. Start with D24 as your reference, then Musang King, then Black Thorn, then XO. Going the other way round, the stronger flavours flatten the gentler ones and everything after XO tastes faint.
Ask what the fruit is like today. Durian is a natural product and the same variety varies from tree to tree and fall to fall. A good seller will tell you honestly whether today's Musang King is at its best or whether the Black Thorn is the better buy this week.
Where D24 still wins
Moving on from D24 does not mean abandoning it. The same explainer that describes its flavour also notes it is the variety reached for in desserts and pastries, because it is mild and consistent. For a cake, a pengat or a durian pancake, a good D24 is often the better choice than a premium fruit whose bitterness gets lost in sugar. Keep it in rotation for that, and for the friend who is trying durian for the first time.
If you want to climb the ladder this week, DurianSupplier.com can put D24, Musang King and Black Thorn side by side for a small tasting order, and tell you which one is eating best right now. Ask us what to try next; we would rather help you find your favourite than sell you the most expensive one.