Tasting a sampling of apples

Iwas surprised to learn recently that there are some 7,500 varieties of apples grown worldwide. Surprised, because I thought there were about 500 varieties, which already seemed like plenty.

Of the 2,500 apple varieties grown in the United States, only a hundred are grown commercially. Of those one hundred, I only see a few on grocery store shelves: Delicious, Fuji, Gala, Macintosh and Granny Smith. A trip to a farmers market or natural foods store will usually offer some of the less common varieties, such as Jonagold, Winesap, Cortland and Gravenstein. Where are all the rest? A stop at the Middlebury Natural Foods Co-op in Middlebury, Vt., last week yielded at least a dozen more. Based on either an intriguing name or on appearance, I selected one apple each of six varieties and brought them home to sample. Knowing how purveyors tend to get a bit “enthusiastic” in their descriptions, I did my tasting before looking up any information on the web. Here’s what I found: Belle du Boskoop — Smooth-skinned and with a crisp, easy texture and a sweet-yet-tangy flavor, this was my favorite. Seed Savers Exchange describes the flesh as being “slightly coarse, crisp and richly flavored for fresh eating.” This is a bud-sport of Reinette de Montfort that was found in 1856 at Boskoop, The Netherlands.

Blue Pearmain — I found the flesh of the Blue Pearmain a bit soft, like a Delicious apple, and the taste sweet yet unremarkable. The russeted skin I found a bit tough. This differs widely from the description I came across at treesofantiquity.com: “Crisp, tender, fine-grained flesh with rich and mildly tart flavor.” This variety was first recognized around Boston in the early 19th century.

Ashmead’s Kernel — Of the six varieties I sampled, Ashmead’s Kernel had the brightest flavor — sweet and with a high, tangy note. Big Horse Creek Farm agrees, saying that the flavor “has been variously described as ‘strong, sweet-sharp intense,’ ‘sweet yet a little acid’ and ‘mouth-puckering.’” The apple originated around 1700 in the gardens of Thomas Ashmead in Gloucester, England.

Ananas Reinette — For me, the flavor of this apple was bright, almost sour, and the flesh quite dense, like a Granny Smith. The Trees of Antiquity website describes the apple as “crisp and juicy with intense sweet, sharp flavor, developing pineapple flavor late in the season (its name means pineapple russet).” First noted in France in the 1500s.

Cox’s Orange Pippin — I was expecting great things from this apple, having heard from my brother (then living in England) that this was the best-tasting apple he’d ever eaten. I found it crisp, juicy and with a light flavor but nothing noteworthy. On the Burpee Seeds website, the apple is described as “crisp, juicy, aromatic: one of the finest apples of all.” At orangepippin.com, I read that this is “the benchmark for flavor in apples.” Perhaps I needed to try more than one.

Knobbed Russet — What a strange fruit! With its knobby, russeted skin, it didn’t even really look like an apple. The soft flesh was in strange contrast to a tough skin. The fruity flavor was kind of lost in the mealy flesh. At newenglandapples.org, I read that “the Knobbed Russet’s character is magically transformed when bitten into. Its bold flavor is superior, strong and earthy, rich and sugary. It has a firm and dense, crisp golden flesh.” Maybe the apple I picked wasn’t a good one?

In any case, what fun to try all of these, to bite into history. Now I’m looking forward to apple hunting wherever I travel.

For other statistics and apple facts, go to extension.illinois.edu/apples/facts.cfm.

PAM BAXTER — FOR DIGITAL FIRST MEDIA The six apples Pam Baxter tried are pictured. They are, at center: Blue Pearmain; clockwise from left: Knobbed Russet, Cox’s Orange Pippin, Belle du Boskoop, Ashmead’s Kernel and Ananas Reinette.