Ramsdell Sweet

Running from medium to the smaller end of large, these classically shaped apples have a streaky red blush.

Save for a few dark stripes the blush comes off as more orange than red over the underlying yellow.

Many light lenticels further enliven this variegated exterior. There is almost no ribbing.

Ramsdell has a sweet cidery aroma and an open calyx. There's a bit of russet in the stem well, which is deep. The peel is moderately glossy, and there is a little give in the squeeze.

Alas, these are mealy. The yellow flesh is really not good to eat. That's doubly disappointing because these have some very promising flavors.

True to its name Ramsdell is sweet, and also highly flavored with corn syrup, cider, vanilla, and sweet corn.

So while I cannot recommend Ramsdell based on experience, I hope for a return engagement in another harvest.

Various sources place Ramsdell's origins in Connecticut a few decades before the Civil War.

Other names include Red Pumpkin Sweet, English Sweet, and Hurlbut. The original name was Ramsdell's Red Sweeting.