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So you like Granny Smith

This distinctive big green apple is named for the Australian farmer who discovered the variety growing in a trash heap.  ¶  Granny's fans are maverick lovers of tart in an ocean of sugary apples.  ¶  In person, the apple bears a good deal of offsetting sweetness alongside its citric tang. Lime, pear, and cane sugar balance together.

Quickies

The six weeks leading up to the start of the harvest feel like they are each a month long. crackles To pass the time, can you tell which apple made me ask, "what if you diluted one Cox's Orange Pippin into a peck of Red Delicious ?"

Hoople's Antique Gold **

What a marvelous name! What do you think it means? These conical light yellow apples are on the large side of small, classically shaped with only a hint of ribs. There's a coppery crown of russet and some brown around the base.

The art of the keeper

Today I get to eat two excellent modern apples (" worth seeking !") that share a particular quality. Competently managed, they both deliver peak eating in the spring. Lady Alice , at right, has saturated flavors with wonderful malt notes and a substantial crunch. GoldRush presents pear and banana along with a dash of citrus. 

Cosmos

A darker Cosmic Crisp Tiny light lenticial dots contrast with the dark red blush of this apple. The folks at Washington State University looked at it and saw stars: pinpoints in the night sky. They named the apple "Cosmic Crisp." However, the blush of the Cosmic Crisps I reviewed in 2019 was not particularly dark.

Apples on the Web: Apples and People

IT STARTS WITH A MAP My love of apples goes without saying, but I am especially beguiled by their human-facing side: the stories and customs and lore around them, the names we give apples, the magic, history, spirit, and significance they lend us as we endow the same to them. Those intangibles are the heart of a new website, profoundly English and with an impressive roster of sponsors and funders.

Parable of the banana

Thought experiment: imagine that one vast banana tree is the world's sole supply of the yellow fruit. Now imagine the tree is dying from an incurable disease. Actually, with some poetic license,  that is the case.