So you like Fuji

Crisp, reliable Fuji was Honeycrisp before there was Honeycrisp. ¶ 

Fuji's development in Japan was interrupted by World War II, and the apple was not released until 1962. ¶ 

Today it is a mainstay, available in supermarkets year round. Fuji accounts for about 25% of US apple production, behind only Gala and Red Delicious.

It's easy to understand the appeal of this crisp and delicately flavored apple. Some Fuji fans would never eat anything else.

But my mission is to lure you out of the rut you may not know you are in. If you are curious, give these Fuji-adjacent apples a try.

Promises of spring

There are buds on the branches of the apple trees today at Hutchins Farm in Concord, Massachusetts. A line of younger apple trees is visible in the distance. ¶ 

After a week of sleet and snow, yesterday's eclipse seemed to mark a change in the weather and the start of spring. ¶ 

Spring surprise

I've been enjoying, of all things, Gingergold apples that I found in a local supermarket. ¶ 

Every Gingergold I have ever had has been local and fresh. The commercial space they occupy is pretty far from that contested by Honeycrips and its pretenders. ¶ 

Yet these Gingergolds had clearly been in industrial-grade storage. Each wore a glistening coating of wax.

In August, Gingergold is refreshing and light, sweet and a little spicy, and very easy to like.