Senator *

Medium sized and oblate with next to no ribbing, Senator has a pure red blush that at its deepest is dark and saturated, with none of the purple tones that characterize many deep red apples.

The blush is more orange-red where thinner. Coverage is nearly complete.

The peel is otherwise yellow tinted green, and tan lenticels (generally small and numerous below, large and rarefied aloft) add dramatic contrast. Senator is a looker.

The apple feels quite firm with only a faint musty aroma.

Senator crackles at first bite, with very crisp off-white flesh shot with red. The flesh is perhaps more fine-grained than coarse; it is more than moderately juicy.

The apple's aroma, or lack of it, while unbroken is a harbinger of its flavors, which are all weak and attenuated. There is a little cane sugar and a whisper of berries and vinousness, that is all.

I like full-flavored apples, so this is disappointing. But I have to admit how much Senator's great crunch makes it oddly appealing.

A second sample has flavors that are a very little better, enough to suggest a washed out Mac or Macoun. Its faint sweet finish includes just a whisper of vanilla.

This slightly improved taste helped the whole thing come together for me. I think a lot of people would like Senator at its peak.

The Apple Journal says that Senator was originally Oliver, hailing from Arkansas in the early 19th century. Creighton Lee Calhoun tells more of that story on page 119 of his Old Southern Apples.