| Variety |
History |
Description |
Common Uses |
Availability |
McIntosh
 |
This old, well-known variety was discovered
as a chance seedling by John McIntosh in 1811.
|
Deep red finish, sometimes with a green blush. Has a distinctive
aroma, and delicious "tangy" flavour. Pulp is firm and crisp. Cooks soft and smooth.
Reasonably good keeper. |
Fresh eating, cooking, baking, salads, sauces. |
Early to late September. |
Royal Gala
 |
This variety originated in New Zealand, a cross
between Kidd's Orange Red and Golden Delicious. The Royal Gala strain was
named in honour of Queen Elizabeth II, who deemed it her favourite during a
visit to New Zealand. It was brought to North America in the early 1970s, and
is now a very popular apple. |
Crispy, juicy and sweet with excellent texture and flavour.
It is a crisp, firm fruit with pronounced red stripes over a yellow-orange undercolor. |
Fresh eating, baking, salads, sauces. |
Early to late September. |
Honey Crisp
 |
This popular apple is a cross between a Macoun and
a Honeygold. |
Extraordinarily crisp and juicy apple with a honeyed
mild flavour. The coarse flesh is a distinctive mottled red over a yellow background.
Stores well. |
Fresh eating, cooking, salads. |
Mid September to early October. |
Jonagold
 |
A blend of Jonathan and Golden Delicious apples,
this New York native offers a unique honey-tart flavour, and crispy, juicy,
nearly yellow flesh. It was first introduced in 1968, a product of the New
York State Agricultural Experiment Station. |
Often large in size, Jonagold are firm apples,
crisp and sweet with a yellow-green base skin colour and a red-orange
blush. |
Fresh eating, cooking, baking, pies, salads, sauces. |
Mid September to early October. |
Empire
 |
Empires premiered in 1966 in the Empire State
of New York, a cross between Red Delicious and McIntosh, developed by the
New York State Agricultural Experiment Station. |
This round medium-sized apple is dark red, crisp and juicy
with a delightful sweet-tart flavour and creamy white flesh, making it a good
all purpose apple. |
Fresh eating, cooking, baking, pies, salads, sauces. |
Mid September to Mid October. |
Mutsu
 |
Also known as Crispin. This apple originated in Japan
and is a cross between Golden Delicious and Indo varieties. |
Distinctive, delicate, spicy flavor, faintly anise-like.
An excellent all purpose apple. Moderately sweet flavour with juicy, firm
and creamy white flesh. Skin colour is a yellowish-green with an orange blush.
Stores well. |
Fresh eating, baking, pies, salads, sauces. |
Late September to Mid October. |
Golden Delicious
 |
Golden Delicious was discovered as a chance
seedling in Clay County, West Virginia in 1914 and was named Mullin's Yellow
Seedling. Stark Brothers bought propagation rights and renamed it Golden
Delicious as a companion to (Red) Delicious, to which it is not related
genetically. The parentage of Golden Delicious is thought to be Golden Reinette
and Grimes Golden. |
Excellent all-purpose apple with a rich, unique
flavour. One of the finest salad and dessert apples grown. Pale yellow
flesh is medium firm, juicy, and resists browning. Pulp is firm and crisp.
Cooks firm. This sweet apple requires little added sugar in cooking uses,
where its firmness helps hold its shape. It also has excellent flavour
when eaten fresh. It's a popular inclusion in fresh apple cider.
|
Fresh eating, cooking, baking, pies, salads, sauces. |
Early to Mid October |
Red Delicious
 |
This most popular variety in the world came from the
obscurity of a non-apple region--central Iowa. A farmer named Jesse Hiatt discovered
the chance seedling on his farm near Peru, Iowa, and twice tried to chop it out. When
it sprouted a third time, he gave it a reprieve and let it grow. Later he discovered
qualities in it he liked. He displayed it as the Hawkeye variety at an 1893 fruit show
in Louisiana, Missouri, sponsored by Stark Brothers Nurseries Orchards Co., which
purchased propagating rights in 1894. Stark Brothers renamed it Delicious, still its
official name although it is popularly known as Red Delicious to distinguish it from
Golden Delicious. |
Officially classed as a "sweet" apple, but with a
certain pleasing tartness. Highly flavoured for fresh eating. A glossy red
apple with a distinctive "typey" five-pointed elongated shape. Pulp is crisp and juicy
with sweet yellow flesh. Good keeper. |
Fresh eating, salads. |
Early to Mid October |
