Crossword Genius

Damn rain spoiled fruit (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

mandarin

'fruit' is the definition.
(I know that mandarin is a type of fruit)

'damn rain spoiled' is the wordplay.
'spoiled' indicates anagramming the letters.
'damn'+'rain'='damnrain'
'damnrain' with letters rearranged gives 'MANDARIN'.

(Other definitions for mandarin that I've seen before include "A billion people understand it" , "High-ranking public official" , "Drain man (anag) - high-ranking Chinese official" , "Chinese official - fruit" , "Asiatic duck" .)

I've seen this clue in The Irish Times.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app