SO FAR FROM THE HARVEST
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| GoldRush (L) and Empire |
The late spring used to be enlivened by imports of (relatively) fresh apples from Chile, New Zealand, and other points south.
Today these apples are swept away on the ebb tides of global commerce. (Tariffs? Hormuz Strait?) Things are a little bleak.
This year I've found myself gravitating to the last of my GoldRush from the fall, and, unexpectedly, Empire.
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Empire has long been my cheerful vinous go-to in the spring, though not to this extent. They are reliable, if a bit generic. This year they have only available in three-pound plastic bags, not loose with the "premium" produce.
They've held up well for all that, but the latest bag is showing its age with texture fatigue.
From time to time I've tried to leaven this diet with Honeycrisp competitors and been disappointed. Ever crisp is one thing, but flavor counts too, and these are just washed out this time of year.
It's going to be a long seven weeks until the first local apples hit our farmers markets.
Try Malang Apples (Apel Malang) from Indonesia then. They're small, but kinda sweet and sour. I tried it tho. ;)
ReplyDeleteI have been so unimpressed with the apple offerings at the local market these days that I bought apricots and peaches this week, despite the fact that I knew they wouldn't measure up to my idea of what apricots and peaches should taste like. (Too early for the best peaches, and apricots will never measure up to the nearly-extinct Royal/Blenheim. I used to have a Blenheim tree in my backyard in San Diego but all the Blenheim trees that I knew of (in my yard and the yards of friends) perished as the warmer winters lead to disease and death of that beloved variety in the area. And Port Angeles is too cold for most apricots--I am trying a "Puget Gold" which is supposedly suited to the maritime Northwest climate, but so far, only three blossoms and no fruit.) Northwest cherries are just around the corner....
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