Skip to main content

Rubinola**

Strekey red apple hanging from a branch, surrounded by green leaves

It took me a while to identify one of the characteristic flavors of this apple, but once my mouth figured it out the taste was obvious. ¶ 

Rubinola is round, oblate, and barely ribbed. The streaky red blush is a bit orange where thin over the yellow peel. 

There are not only streaks, but also tiny splotches of red floating against a pale orange field.

Rubinola's small tan lenticel dots are hard to spot among all that visual activity, and there is a crown of russet ringing the stem well.

Flavor challenge

Inside, the medium-grained yellow flesh is breaking crisp, full flavored, and juicy. But just because it's got flavors does not mean I can always figure out what they are!

I struggled with this, pairing what's in my mouth with my mental catalog. From my notes:

hard-cider funk? Sort of...savory? Sour grain, but not very sour, and also actually sweet and

Malt!

And maybe some of those other flavors too, but that's the taste I struggled to find. It was not as obvious as the malt in, say Wickson, but once I had my eureka moment it was obvious.

And very good! There is also a floral quality.

two stars Rubinola is great, with some unusual flavors and a satisfying crunch. With luck, someone will grow these in the States.

I hope you do not mind my sharing my gustatorial gymnastics on this one. I was worried I wouldn't figure it out before I ran out of apple!

Origins

Rubinola is a modern apple, ca. 1997, from the Czech Republic. Orchardists take note, it is also disease resistant. 

Orange Pippin notes, "Slices do not oxidise (brown) when cut." OP also says Rubinola is a Prima x Rubin cross.

Here's another look:

Striped red apple against a patterned background
Rubinola on a table on the 14:28 train to London from Paddock Wood.

Comments

  1. I’ve enjoyed reading about your discoveries in the U.K.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Don't forget about my trip to Quebec! A banner year for apple travel for me.

      I am pleased you are enjoying the blog.

      Delete
  2. You know, my friend, I went to work picking apples this season. It was beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. For several years I enjoyed a blog called "A Life of Apples," by an apple picker named Chris.

      He doesn't post there any more, but his wonderful writing is evergreen.

      Delete
  3. Searches for "Rubinola scionwood" or "Rubinola tree for sale" yield almost exclusively European results, although one can find mentions of people growing Rubinola trees in the U.S. with more general "Rubinola apple" searches. Makes me determined to find scionwood for this variety even if it isn't any good (but based on your description, it sounds rather good).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's an interesting problem. I've never looked into it, but I imagine one needs a licence to import budwood as with other ag products.

      That's going to be prohibitive at least for the home orchardist.

      Odd how you'd have better luck finding wood for an obscure heritage cultivar than a modern European one.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Join the conversation! We'd love to know what you think.