Try ‘Em, You’ll Like Them!

Tired of the same old Red Delicious apples? Purchase something new and tweak those taste buds! There many new and flavorful apple cultivars available from local growers, farmer’s markets, and at grocery stores. Some of the newer early-season apples include Zestar!, Honeycrisp, Sansa, Ginger Gold and Akane. Zestar! was released from the University of Minnesota breeding program. The fruit is pinkish-red over a green skin color. These apples are well balanced in sweetness and acidity and are exceptionally crisp and juicy at harvest. Honeycrisp, another release from the University of Minnesota and been judged one of the most outstanding, high quality apple cultivars developed in recent years. Although it is not a particularly attractive apple, the fruit is large sized and the flesh is explosively crisp with a pleasant sweet/tart flavor. Honeycrisp has an extraordinarily long storage life in which it retains its crisp texture in refrigeration. While it produces terrific fruit, it can be challenging to grow. Also, if the grower picks the fruit too late, the apples produce an aldehyde flavor or "off taste".

Akane (sometimes called Prime Red) is harvested in early August and is an attractive medium-sized, red apple. It is a Jonathan x Worchester Pearman cross. The fruit is extremely aromatic and has a delightful tart flavor that makes it excellent for pies. Sansa is Gala x Akane cross developed in Japan. It is generally a smaller, roundish, red apple (very much like Gala) with a good sugar/acid ratio. Ginger Gold is a good early apple, with many Golden Delicious attributes, but much earlier ripening. It has a mild tangy flavor with firm flesh.

Shizuka Cameo, Suncrisp, GoldRush, CandyCrisp, and Pink Lady are all late season apples. If you like the spicy Mutsu flavor, Shizuka is a sister to Mutsu, but is a bit milder in flavor. Cameo is a Red Delicious-like apple without the bumps on the end of the fruit. While folks in Washington favor the Delicious flavor, it may be too tame for the taste of Mid-westerners. Suncrisp is a Golden Delicious type apple that is firm and tart. It is an apple that actually tastes better after a period of cold storage. GoldRush can often be found in the organically grown section of the market. It is a smaller apple, often with russeted rough skin. The flesh of Goldrush resists browning after its cut, and makes attractive yellow sauce or nice firm slices for baking. It has remarkable keeping qualities and develops its complex flavor after a period of cold storage, but is not universally liked. CandyCrisp is a very attractive yellow apple. It has the "typey" elongated shape that many consumers favor and has a wonderful sweet flavor. Pink Lady, developed in western Australia, is a cultivar that is unlikely to be found in Missouri farmers’ markets as it requires a warm, extremely long growing season to properly ripen. The fruit has an attractive pink blush over a yellow background color and it can be quite tart.

The final cultivar, PiZata, is perhaps one of the most controversial. It was introduced in 1986 in Germany and was called Pinova. Later its name was changed in France to Corail (the French word for coral red) and later called Sonata. Today, the license to produce this apple in the United States is held exclusively by Stemilt Growers, Inc., a Washington company. Stemilt has once again renamed the apple, PiZata. As a "club variety", anyone who wants to grow this cultivar must obtain permission from Stemilt and agree to market the fruit through their company. It is a medium-sized round apple with a bright pink blush that covers about 50% of the yellow background. It has a firm fine-grained flesh with a sweet tangy flavor. Because Missouri apple growers market their fruit independently, this cultivar will be found in the larger chain-type grocery stores.

Whatever your taste preference, give some of these new apple cultivars a try. You may not care for all of them, but surely your palate will be greatly expanded!

Michele Warmund
Ag Ext.-Plant Sciences
573-882-9632