Adam's Apples

What apples do you like for late winter and early spring? I usually lean heavily on Macouns for as long as they last, but the crop was small this year. Empire can be reliable and I often find myself turning to them in April, May, and June. But this winter I ate a lot of three varieties that previously were only available briefly. They are Opal , a new European variety that has just one North American grower The uneven, but superb when at best, Lady Alice Elusive  Pacific Rose

For the past few months I have been enjoying a steady stream of writing about apples and their role in American history and culture at American Orchard . This blog belongs to historian William Kerrigan, the author of Johnny Appleseed and the American Orchard , tantalizing excerpts of which sometimes find themselves into blog posts. This blog goes right to the heart of the apple as a profoundly social fruit, mediated by society but also mediating it, as in this post about hard cider and the election of 1840 .

If you miss the apple season as much as I do, you will enjoy Steven Edholm's recapitulation of the harvest on his farm. In a recent post on his blog, Turkeysong, Steven shares his apple tasting notes for the second half of his growing season, which, since he is located near Ukiah, California, lasts until late January.