An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

Come on in and shoot the breeze! This is the place for anything and everything not related to sports or politics. Please take political discussions off-site!
Post Reply
Message
Author
User avatar
John
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 15566
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 10:34 am
Location: A changed 19th-century America
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#46 Post by John »

Now this is research I can sink my teeth into! Via io9.com, I see that new research shows Ursolic acid prevents muscle wasting and, even better, helps muscles grow. And what food has a higher concentration of Ursolic acid than any other? That's right... apples! Specifically, it's the peels that contain the Ursolic acid, so for God's sake, don't throw them away! They're the tastiest part, anyway.

Now sure, you'd have to consume an insane amount of apples (yes, even more insane than the amount I consume) to become the Incredible Hulk through apple consumption. Still, if you're interested in toning your body, you could do worse than adding apples to your diet. Every bit helps, after all. ;-D
John Rodriguez
Hard at work...
User avatar
Lions
Hall of Famer
Hall of Famer
Posts: 3831
Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2010 1:17 pm
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#47 Post by Lions »

This list has caused marital strife in my household. My wife loves Fuji apples, and gave me a bit of an eye roll when I brought home Braeburns today. :shake:
Frank Esselink
Amsterdam Lions/Connecticut Nutmeggers GM: 2013-2022, 2031-present
Kalamazoo Badgers GM: 2028-2030
Jim

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#48 Post by Jim »

We have started visiting local produce stands, largely inspired by this thread. While we've loved the fruits and vegetables we've brought home, I haven't found any varieties of apples other than what I find in our local grocery stores. I'm hoping that changes later on in the season, because I'm looking forward to trying different apple varieties.

We've only been to the 3 vegetable stands that we pass by on a frequent basis. Maybe we'll need to seek out more. There is also a temporary farmers market that sets up near our house. But it runs from 8am till noon only on Saturdays. Unfortunately that's prime sleep-in time for us :)
User avatar
John
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 15566
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 10:34 am
Location: A changed 19th-century America
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#49 Post by John »

Cliff Hangers wrote:We have started visiting local produce stands, largely inspired by this thread. While we've loved the fruits and vegetables we've brought home, I haven't found any varieties of apples other than what I find in our local grocery stores. I'm hoping that changes later on in the season, because I'm looking forward to trying different apple varieties.

We've only been to the 3 vegetable stands that we pass by on a frequent basis. Maybe we'll need to seek out more. There is also a temporary farmers market that sets up near our house. But it runs from 8am till noon only on Saturdays. Unfortunately that's prime sleep-in time for us :)
I'm so glad to hear that you've been inspired to seek out local apples and produce, Jim, and you too, Frank! Jim, yes indeed, you'll likely start seeing new apples in a couple of months. June is not apple season; we're still a few months away before that really kicks off. Here's the schedule you can expect:
  • July: First new season apples appear. Don't get too excited, though; these are mostly low-quality "sauce" apples. Those (like me!) that can stand a real tart apple will find a couple of options to tide you over until the action really starts heating up.
    • Best July apples: Pristine, Transparent
  • August: We're not yet in prime apple season, but now things are starting to get interesting. In fact, some of my very favorite apples are "early season" varieties that come and go in August, so be alert! The good stuff should start appearing around the middle of the month.
    • Best August apples: Burgundy, Zestar!
  • September & October: Welcome to prime apple season! September and October is when the bulk of new apples hit the market. Shop locally and seek out heirloom varieties!
    • Best September apples: Everything! Specific popular varieties to target include Jonathan, Ruby Jon and Honeycrisp. Specific heirloom varieties to target include Cox's Orange Pippen and Esopus Spitzenburg.
    • Best October apples: Specific popular varieties to target include Stayman Winesap, Spijon and Northern Spy. Specific heirloom varieties to target include Golden Russet, Baldwin, Calville Blanc d'Hiver and Ashmead's Kernel.
  • November: Apple season is ending, but the late varieties are some of the best keepers. That's great news, because if you can find a supplier, you can be buying some of these apples into next June.
    • Best November apples: GoldRush, Granny Smith, Autumn Crisp
Though this thread is devoted to apples, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that June is prime season for some of the best fresh produce out there. Strawberries are just now coming into season in many parts of the country. I've got two quarts in my refrigerator right now, and they are delicious. Head to your local farmers' market and you'll find a lot more great food coming into season, like garlic scapes and wine cap mushrooms. There is a world of great food out there just waiting to be discovered... and new apples are right around the corner! ;-D
John Rodriguez
Hard at work...
Jim

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#50 Post by Jim »

PEBA Commissioner wrote:Strawberries are just now coming into season in many parts of the country.
We've had some delicious strawberry shortcake. And also some tasty Watermelon.
User avatar
Lions
Hall of Famer
Hall of Famer
Posts: 3831
Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2010 1:17 pm
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#51 Post by Lions »

We have a small farmer's market less than 2 blocks from our house. Berries have started to show up recently, and they are indeed good. We'll go to the larger farmer's market downtown when peaches get in season as the selection is better at that one. Portland is a great city for this type of stuff, although not quite as big on apple varieties.
Frank Esselink
Amsterdam Lions/Connecticut Nutmeggers GM: 2013-2022, 2031-present
Kalamazoo Badgers GM: 2028-2030
User avatar
John
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 15566
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 10:34 am
Location: A changed 19th-century America
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#52 Post by John »

Nutmeggers wrote:We have a small farmer's market less than 2 blocks from our house. Berries have started to show up recently, and they are indeed good. We'll go to the larger farmer's market downtown when peaches get in season as the selection is better at that one. Portland is a great city for this type of stuff, although not quite as big on apple varieties.
Oh yeah, you're really lucky to have access to the Portland farmers' market scene. I've heard it's one of the best in the country. But as you say, probably not a huge hot spot for fresh apples. You'd have to travel north to Washington, where they grow a bunch of apples. Granted, most of what Washington grows is the "boring" mass-market varieties. Washington is also the big supplier of "club" varieties of apples in the U.S.
John Rodriguez
Hard at work...
User avatar
Duane
Hall of Famer
Hall of Famer
Posts: 2216
Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2007 1:12 pm

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#53 Post by Duane »

As a youngin, I grew up with orchard visits and fresh apples of various varieties. I have since gone away from this for two reasons - several of the orchards near my area have gone away, and secondly, those that still exist have become very expensive in comparison to fruits from the store.

I do completely concur in that nothing can compare to the taste of fresh picked apples nor the pies they can produce, but is the added expense worth it??? John, I challenge you to convince me to 'come back' ... Where can we get these tasty treats that won't drain the pocket???
Duane

all but one season .... PEBA

Even though we fell short against Duluth in 2026 ... and SS in 2027 and 2029 8-o
IL still RULES!!!!!
User avatar
John
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 15566
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 10:34 am
Location: A changed 19th-century America
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#54 Post by John »

When it comes to price, that's really down to what the individual family can bear. It's easy for me to wax poetic about how ridiculously better fresh, local produce tastes over cheaply produced and shipped produce from the supermarket, or about how fresh, local produce is healthier than their cheaply produced and shipped counterparts, but none of that is going to make a difference if I'm speaking to a family or an individual who is working on the kind of limited budget that simply won't allow for the superior, more expensive choice. Here are the basic tips I will give to cost-focused shoppers:
  • There absolutely is a gigantic qualitative difference between local and shipped produce (i.e. most produce you get in the store).
    • Part of the difference is in the taste. In many cases, it's like eating an entirely different food. Other foods don't exhibit as radical a taste difference.
      • Biggest taste difference (local vs. shipped): Mushrooms, apples, peaches, berries, broccoli
      • Smallest taste difference (local vs. shipped): Peppers, onions
    • Part of the difference is health-related.
      • Profit-focused mega agribusinesses are more likely to utilize growing techniques that produce less healthy produce (e.g. chemical and pesticide baths) than small-scale local farmers. At minimum, you can ask your local farmer about his growing techniques, an option unavailable to you at the supermarket.
      • Agribusinesses pick their produce before it's fully ripe so that it will last while being shipped. Local growers can pick at peak ripeness and sell to you immediately.
      • Shipped produce is often treated with preservation-enhancing chemicals. That's unnecessary for local farmers.
  • There absolutely is a cost difference between local and supermarket produce, too. Supermarket produce is "cheap by design". Agribusiness understands that many consumers are going to assume an apple is an apple and buy the absolute cheapest option, so coming to market at the lowest price point at all costs becomes priority #1. Achieving that goal means quality of taste and health get sacrificed, though (see above).
    • Though buying local is usually going to cost more, there are ways to minimize the hit. The #1 way? Shop around! The difference can be tremendous.
      • EXAMPLE: The closest orchard to my house, Patterson's, is 5 minutes away. Patterson's is also the most popular orchard in the region, though it's still a mid-sized operation. Their popularity allows them to sell at inflated prices. A peck of GoldRush apples cost $19.25 from Patterson's. Compare that to Sage's Apples, 20 minutes away, where I can get a peck of GoldRush for $11.50, and $2 off if I buy two pecks, and I get every 10th peck free (don't have to buy all at once for that perk). Let's say I'm buying a bushel of GoldRush (four pecks). The price difference is $77 (Patterson's) vs. $46 (Sage's, assuming I didn't get one peck free). I do pay a little extra in gas money, but that won't come even close to erasing the $31 I save. The trip pays for itself and then some,
Undeniably, cost matters. We're living in tight financial times; we need to find ways to stretch our dollar. Still, I want you to consider where you choose to stretch your dollar. Before you go cheap on your food, ask yourself if there's another area where you can skimp or cut altogether that will allow you to extend your food budget. After all, is it more important to have 170 cable channels vs. 40, or is it more important to have the tastiest and healthiest food possible each month? I'd submit that the latter choice is a better allocation of your resources.
John Rodriguez
Hard at work...
User avatar
Lions
Hall of Famer
Hall of Famer
Posts: 3831
Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2010 1:17 pm
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#55 Post by Lions »

We have a lot of U-Pick farms nearby in places like Sauvie Island. I've not gone to pick apples, but have picked a variety of berries and the per pound cost is about the same as the ones we get from the mass growers in the supermarket chains. The cost of getting there and back is greater, meaning the overall cost is more. That said, we really enjoy the experience of being out on the farm in the fresh air. We make a family trip of it, and often go with friends (recommendation: wear dark colors if your friends are inclined to "share" their berries with you from several rows away, at high velocity, and with no warning). To be honest, though, my neighbor has a handful of high producing blueberry bushes which she happily shares with us, and those are the best from a cost, taste, and convenience standpoint. Sadly, they rarely make it into the house.
Frank Esselink
Amsterdam Lions/Connecticut Nutmeggers GM: 2013-2022, 2031-present
Kalamazoo Badgers GM: 2028-2030
User avatar
Duane
Hall of Famer
Hall of Famer
Posts: 2216
Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2007 1:12 pm

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#56 Post by Duane »

PEBA Commissioner wrote: Undeniably, cost matters. We're living in tight financial times; we need to find ways to stretch our dollar. Still, I want you to consider where you choose to stretch your dollar. Before you go cheap on your food, ask yourself if there's another area where you can skimp or cut altogether that will allow you to extend your food budget. After all, is it more important to have 170 cable channels vs. 40, or is it more important to have the tastiest and healthiest food possible each month? I'd submit that the latter choice is a better allocation of your resources.
got me there ... no more MLB network :,-(
Duane

all but one season .... PEBA

Even though we fell short against Duluth in 2026 ... and SS in 2027 and 2029 8-o
IL still RULES!!!!!
User avatar
Bill
Hall of Famer
Hall of Famer
Posts: 2760
Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2007 1:14 pm
Location: Raleigh, NC
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#57 Post by Bill »

Apparently, John is on to something...http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/health/5 ... n-2507875/
User avatar
John
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 15566
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 10:34 am
Location: A changed 19th-century America
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#58 Post by John »

Warriors wrote:Apparently, John is on to something...http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/health/5 ... n-2507875/
There's no question that the dietary fiber in apples makes them a great snack food. Unlike sugary snacks that pass right through you and leave you craving more, that fiber fills you up and leaves you satisfied (with a delicious taste in your mouth, to boot). Just remember to eat the peel... that's where the fiber lives!

Though I haven't been plugging it, I've been periodically updating the apple rankings list in the first post. Several new apples have been added to the list, including "club" varieties like Tentation (#30, "Decent"), Envy (#33, "Decent") and SweeTango (#86, "Dear God..."). We're now up to 88 apples ranked, and more are on the way! That's right... apple season is just around the corner. In fact, I just read the first Facebook wall update from one of the orchards I subscribe to that Lodi apples are being harvested. Lodi (#41, "So-so"), one of the first new season apples, aren't generally considered eating apples, as they're too tart for most tastes. Still, they're the signal that the good stuff is only about a month away. I intend to take a few trips this season to seek out unusual varieties of apples, both new and heirloom. Northern New York is definitely on my "to visit" list, and if I get adventurous enough, I may venture into Virginia and/or New England seeking unique varieties so that I can rank them here for you. :D
John Rodriguez
Hard at work...
User avatar
John
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 15566
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 10:34 am
Location: A changed 19th-century America
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#59 Post by John »

And so it begins! I just ranked my 90th apple, Red Transparent, the first new apple of the 2011 season. Red Transparent is a Russian version of the more popular Yellow Transparent (commonly referred to as simply "Transparent"). Red Transparent is a true summer apple, which means it's not much good for eating out of hand; it's strictly a saucer. Still, it's a sign that the good stuff is just around the corner. Good, plain old Transparent apples should be appearing shortly, followed soon by the best July apple, Pristine. Then in early August, you'll get Zestar!, the first truly kick-butt new apple of the season.

If you have any intentions of apple shopping this year (and I hope you do), get yourself prepared to hit your local orchards and farmer's markets starting in about three weeks! ;-D
John Rodriguez
Hard at work...
User avatar
Reg
Hall of Famer
Hall of Famer
Posts: 2542
Joined: Wed Oct 31, 2007 4:42 pm
Location: Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada
Contact:

Re: An apple a day: My personal ranking of apple varieties

#60 Post by Reg »

I just recently expending to eating Golden Delicious...while its not top of your...it is quickly becoming closer to the top of mine...the ones that I picked up had some semblance to a pear...though not as sweet...still very good ;-D
Reg LeBlanc
General Manager, New Orleans Trendsetters
(2021 - 2037)
Post Reply

Return to “Off-Topic General Discussion”