What is your favorite Apple Variety and what do you use it for?

[wyoDreamer]

I just finished eating a local grown (WI) Honey Crisp apple. It was crunchy and somewhat juicy but I was not impressed with the flavor - not really alot of flavor, but not quite what I want in an apple either. Not sure how to describe it - kinda honey like, but more of a buckwheat honey taste than a sweet, wildflower honey.

 

[flowerbug]

i do not really have a favorite apple. i like the ones on the tart side the best. i do agree that Red Delicious really needs to be fresh to be decent otherwise i can pass on those completely and have something else. one thing nice about MI is that it does have some good apples.

i'm not too picky about texture when cooked because i eat almost all apples that ways. the best apple sauce we ever made was done from a mix of apples a guy had leftover from his organic orchard. we made many gallons of it and canned it and also gave tubs to the food kitchen place for the poor folks. alas we did not know until a bit too late that we needed to use the finer mesh in the food mill so some of the tubs had a bit of skin or core in there that the mill didn't catch. still it was good.

for cider i like the first pressing before things get too sweet. i only want just a glass or two and then i am ok for the rest of the season.

my friend up north would drive around and find old abandoned or wild trees to harvest apples from. some were rather tart but when he dehydrated them they would sweeten up a bit and those made great snacks.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

@thistlebloom I don't think I've welcomed you. So, a hearty welcome from the 45th parallel. I like the fact that you've given details about your location that are pertinent to a gardener!!!

 

[thistlebloom]

three out of four growing tasty and plentiful apples from root stock is pretty good news. are they all similar or each different? or do you mean they are also a crab apple?

They are all different. One tree makes huge apples the size of softballs. Those aren't great for fresh eating but are pretty good in a pie. The others are smaller, with different taste profiles. I have dehydrated, made pies and sauced them all. Some are more suitable for one thing or another, but not all three uses. Usually the neighbors help keep them picked and used, but everybody has planted a few trees of their own now, and that are bearing, so we have a lot that are left there for the moose and deer.

 

[baymule]

I'm in Texas.....not much apple growing around here.

 

[thistlebloom]

Thank you @Lazy Gardener , and I don't believe you are really lazy! 😉

 

[thistlebloom]

So, more of a smart gardener 😊

 

[flowerbug]

I have a Honeycrisp and a Sweet 16 in back. I think they are both great, but the Sweet 16 develops a really complex flavor when it's left on the tree to mature more. I discovered this by accident. I didn't pick most of the apples we got this year, and after letting several friends pick their fill, and they went for the Honeycrisp primarily, I picked a bucket to bring in before an expected early freeze. They were wonderful.

We also have four trees out front that were Prairie Fire crabs that died at the graft and the rootstocks took over. They are all different from each other and three of the trees produce really tasty fruit, and a lot of it.

I had a Zestar that only fruited one season before being killed by a buck using it for an antler rub. Those were good apples! I should replace it, but we don't use up what we already have.

three out of four growing tasty and plentiful apples from root stock is pretty good news. are they all similar or each different? or do you mean they are also a crab apple?

 

[YourRabbitGirl]

I love apples! But, I am also an apple snob. I have specific varieties that I use for specific things.
Here is my starter list of apple varieties and what I like/don't like about them:

Red Delicious - I don't like these. Yes they are crispy and pretty, but they are also very low in flavor. You can't cook with them as they stay firm and they don't have any taste when dehydrated.

Yellow Delicious - One of my top 5 favorite apples. Can't grow them here. Great for pies, dehydrating, general eating. Great flavor, holds shape when baked in a pie.

Jona-Gold - One of my top 5 favorite apples. Can't grow them here. Great for pies, dehydrating, canning, general eating. Makes chunky applesauce

Macintosh - A good apple, but doesn't make my top 5 list. Grown in my area. OK general eating - lacks crunch. Cooks down to much for pies in my opinion. Excellent for applesauce.

Macoun - One of my top 5 favorite apples - Best for eating, very good for dehydrating. Does not cook that well, so no pies or applesauce.

Braeburn - One of my top 5. Good flavor, cooks well, crunchy for general eating.

Jonathon - One of my top 5. Good flavor. Great for pies, sauce, general eating and dehydrating. Hard to find.

Idared - another great apple. Good all-around and tasted great. Hard to find now-a-days.

So, how about you - what is your favorite apple and why?

Jonagold Apple
A lovely red hue with hints of yellow, this species is a mix of the Jonathan and the Golden Delicious and bears a physical resemblance to both. Jonagold is sweet and thin-skinned, my daughters likes it as it is. It is versatile and can be used in any recipe that calls for apples.