Apple Varieties
We have 14 varieties of apples within our orchard of over 2,000 trees. We invite you to pick your own or if you like, you may find many of these varieties available and bagged up in the retail barn.
August-Early September
PAULARED-Sweet with some tart notes, excellent for fresh eating, pies and sauce. Does not store long.
ZESTAR-Developed by the University of Minnesota (same folks who developed Honeycrisp). If you are one of our loyal Honeycrisp customers, you will love this early variety. It is sweet and crunchy!
GINGER GOLD-Large, green and crisp, with a little hint of ginger and nutmeg, excellent for fresh eating but do not store for very long.
Early September-Middle September
McINTOSH-A classic New England apple and a favorite for fresh eating, they're also excellent for sauce. If you like a tart apple, this variety is for you!
Middle September-Middle October
CORTLAND-A little tart as well as sweet, firm and crisp. Excellent for fresh eating, pies, sauce, salads (they don't turn brown), and they keep well. If there had to be just one apple variety, this would be our choice.
HONEYCRISP-Excellent for fresh eating; very popular. Sweet, crunchy, juicy, a crowd pleaser. For an interesting read on the complicated origin of Honeycrisp, click here.
MACOUN-Firm, crisp, and sweet. Excellent for eating, and although we haven't baked them (we can't pry ourselves away from Cortland), customers have told us that they make good pies.
SNOW SWEET-Similar to a Honeycrisp with its lilting honey note but has just a bit more depth of flavor. Crunchy and juicy, we have used this apple in everything from pies to sauce to fresh eating by the bushel!
EMPIRE-This apple is a cross of McIntosh and Red Delicious. Smaller in size than McIntosh (just the right size for a school bag), excellent for fresh eating with a mild tart flavor and they keep well, too.
GALA-Sweet, with a flavor reminiscent of pears. Excellent for fresh eating. Stores reasonably well.
HAMPSHIRE-This variety was discovered as a chance spur at Gould Hill Orchards in Hopkinton, NH. Firm, with a mild sweet flavor, and crisp. Stores very well.
SEPTEMBER WONDER-A strain of Fuji, this apple is sweet and crisp.
October
CRIMSON CRISP-As the name suggests this is a brilliant, red apple with a firm and crisp texture. It has a mild sweet flavor and would lend a nice color to applesauce. This apple ripens in color well before it has fully developed its sugars so resist the temptation to pick these until we post them as ready.
NORTHERN SPY-An heirloom variety and another classic New England apple. Firm and crisp right off the tree. Good for fresh eating, but this apple’s claim to fame is as one of the best pie apples around. It has notes of spices like cinnamon and nutmeg with a beautiful cream colored flesh. Stores well, too.