It’s apple season, and I got a few opinions about apples.
What I like in apples: I like tart, and crisp, with additional aspects of flavor a close third in terms of criteria. A long shelf life and consistency across individuals also helps guide me. So if you like soft, sweet apples, this list will at least help you learn what to avoid.
Another note: I’m assuming that most people are familiar with Granny Smiths due to their ubiquity, hence they get mentioned a lot for comparative purposes. Heck, if you’re not amid the New England bounty of apples like I am, maybe that’s all you’ve got besides Red Delicious. If so, I am deeply sorry.
Anyway, let’s get to the part where I do some blathering about varieties.
Ambrosia: I tried one of these for the first time last winter. The name conjures an image of either Olympian pinnacles, or that freaky gelatin, canned fruit, marshmallow, and coconut salad that people always made for potlucks. Unfortunately I was kind of underwhelmed by the lack of a tart counterpoint to the ingratiating sweetness. Potluck, not pinnacles.
Braeburn: Tastes just like “apple.” Which is good. Very crisp, quite tart. Similar to Empire in its straightforward appleness (by which I mean no overtones of honey or exotic fruitiness as in Honeycrisp or Pink Lady). I ate my first one late last winter and I’m definitely pleased. It’s very high on the tart scale without the brutal characteristics of the Granny Smith (see below).
Empire: Back when I first opened my eyes to the crazy variety of apples and struck out from the familiar land of the Granny Smith, this was my next apple of choice. This is another variety like Braeburn that just says “apple” to me: crisp, slightly tart, and straightforward. Empires also seem to keep forever in the fridge. Ultimately, I’ve eaten so goddamn many of these that I’ve been off them for a while, thanks to taste fatigue. But this is a strong choice. In fact, here’s a not-great glamor shot of one I took last spring.
Ginger Gold: last fall I bought a 3-lb. bag of these out of curiosity, which is something I rarely do because I like to pick my victims by hand. Also unusual was the size of each apple: rather than the typical baseball size, these were small, maybe 2 inches in diameter. I ate them in pairs. Woe to anyone who cored or sliced them en masse, what a chore for the reward. Anyway, these were definitely outside the box in terms of what I usually like: not particularly crisp, with skins that were fairly soft rather than shiny. The taste, though, had a very pleasant spiciness that I liked a lot, and I forgave them their noncrispiness on the strength of the interesting flavor. Apparently the flesh browns fairly slowly, too, not that I spent time testing that theory. This fall I bought another big bag of GGs that were a more typical apple size, and I did enjoy them all over again. And despite my tales of excess, I recommend getting fewer at a time than I have, so you can eat them when they’re freshest.
Granny Smith: one of the year-round stalwarts, although it’s often hard to find a good one. Definitely avoid any that are shaped more like cylinders than the stereotypical heart shape—they tend to be mealier in my experience. Often too damn tart, with tough skin. My last resort apple. I heartily recommend slicing these before eating—I always feel like I’m getting a periodontal scaling when I try to bite into the skin, and slicing mitigates the amount of work your teeth have to do. This is the Arnold Schwarzenegger of apples: indestructible but in no way subtle.
Honeycrisp: If this is among my apple choices, then hands down I buy these over all the others. The name says it all: these are super-crisp and tangy, with an overlay of honey sweetness that offsets the tartness perfectly. Maybe I love these because the first one I had was at an actual orchard, but I haven’t been disappointed by ones at the store. The real tragedy is that they’re often a dollar a pound more than the other, lesser varieties. Bah. This must be Bill Gates’s apple, dude.
Macintosh: I love the taste of Macs, but dammit they aren’t crisp. The flesh has a fabulous perfume and subtle tang, but the skin is very soft, and did I mention they aren’t crisp? They don’t seem to keep as well as Empires, either, so I very rarely buy Macintoshes. If I were to see a particularly spectacular specimen that I knew was fresh, well, then I would probably buy it. Otherwise, eh, it ain’t worth it.
Paula Red: I tried these for the first time last fall, buying a bag of them at the actual orchard. Apparently they have a very short season, so I’m not sure they’re worth getting in the store, since you might not be getting them fresh. But I was very pleased. They’re nice and crisp, and have a solid apple flavor that I liked a lot. When I see these in late August or early September, I definitely buy them.
Pink Lady: When the Honeycrisps are unavailable, this is my go-to apple at the moment. It’s got a blazing tartness, but there is a slight sweetness to offset. Also, the skin is more forgiving than Granny Smith, though thick enough that they keep well in the fridge. All around I dig this one a lot. It also looks nice in decorative fruit bowls, if you're trying to sell your house or are featured in
Architectural Digest or something.
So that’s the lowdown on the Apples I Have Known and Formed an Opinion On. And what’s in the fridge right now? Two Honeycrisps and, uh, an Anjou pear.
