Highlights of the last year

This is the time of year when I gnaw on my memories.

A luminous apple hangs in the mist at Gould Hill Farm.

This photo dates from a day-long visit to some of New England's great orchards on a wet weekend at the end of September. Not bad weather for such a pilgrimage as it turned out.

A swing through Western Massachusetts in October yielded further treasures.

Last year I introduced my own rating system for apples, awarding one to three stars as a way to organize reviews of more than 150 varieties.

Setting myself up as a judge in this way is perilous, but I'm satisfied with the way I have pulled it off. Web statistics for this blog suggest that the ratings are of interest to at least some visitors.

Sweetango at last

Also last fall I finally got my hands on a decent sample of Sweetango and got to see for myself what the fuss is all about.

I also had my first taste of Crimson Gold. It will certainly not be my last if fortune is kind.

Crimson Gold

Other stellar varieties that I sampled for the first time included Grimes Golden, Tolman Sweet, and the Claygate Pearmain.

A California orchardist gave my first taste of a really good King David. What a fine apple.

And these glossy dark Arkansas Blacks will always say November to me.

Just a month until the 2013 apple harvest—less, really!