Breeze (Gala, Galafresh)

Fooled again.

It's not unusual this time of year to see one or two new kinds of apples in stores, fresh off the boat from New Zealand or other points south. So I pounced on Breeze when I found it last week in a local supermarket.

To cut to the chase: They're Galas.

Gala, Braeburn, and Fuji are the three most likely to be sold to you under a completely different name.

The industry must have a low opinion of these apples, if it needs to market them as something they are not.

But then why market them at all? There are plenty of other apples in the orchard. (Or would be, if growers would plant them.)

Breeze is the trademark for Galafresh, a sport of Gala that ripens 2 weeks ahead of the regular crop. Since Gala is already an early variety, that means these were picked in February.

A regular Gala.

Breeze is a large handsome apple with an intense red blush that can be deeply saturated in places, over yellow. The ribbing and tapered, elongated profile reminded me of Delicious.

The apple is decorated with many small light lenticels, most prominently as tiny white pinpricks in the saturated red.

There’s a faint floral aroma.

The Galafresh crunch is decent but not outstanding. There is something a little cardboardy about its medium-grained yellow flesh. The flavors are sweet and floral, corn syrup and daffodils, with a hint of vanilla.

I would not say this was as juicy, or as good, as other Galas I have had, which tasted better and generally had a better texture. I wonder if this one would not have benefited from more time on the tree.

Growers love to pick early, and this would not be the first sport that facilitated a too-early harvest under cover of an “improved” blush.

The rest of the New Zealand crop is, thank goodness, in, and there are better choices.