Apples - Which are the best

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Jun 18, 2000
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The problem with most big grocery stores is that they seldom carry more than six to eight varieties, even if you find some that are available for short periods in the fall.

I wish my grocery that kind of selection for other fruit, especially oranges.
 
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lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
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I couldn't even say what the best orange would be. I generally have one or two big varieties, and one or two little ones, like clementines, which is my preference. I like the way they peel.
 

snoopy7548

Diamond Member
Jan 1, 2005
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I'm pretty partial to Mcintosh. Not overly sweet with a neutral flavor.

Unlike a lot of people, I use them in my apple pie and anyone who tries it says it's the best they've ever had. They don't get mushy - they hold their form but soften up nicely.
 

DigDog

Lifer
Jun 3, 2011
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Doesnt the store that sells apples also sell fruit that doesnt suck, like bananas?? Or, you know, pears, lyches, mangos, cantaloupes, tangerines, kiwis, passion fruit, or ANYTHING which isnt like biting into acid-soaked cardboard?
 

whm1974

Diamond Member
Jul 24, 2016
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Doesnt the store that sells apples also sell fruit that doesnt suck, like bananas?? Or, you know, pears, lyches, mangos, cantaloupes, tangerines, kiwis, passion fruit, or ANYTHING which isnt like biting into acid-soaked cardboard?
Since when did Apples suck? What did you do, bit into a Cider Apple?
 

herm0016

Diamond Member
Feb 26, 2005
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the ones from our trees. we harvested more than 200 lbs of eating quality apples from 2 of our 3 trees this year. Next year they will be cared for better and we will should get even more that are not wormy. I want to build a cider press.

the arborst said they were the best and largest apples he had seen outside of a grocery store this year. we have no idea of the varieties, but the trees are at least 50 years old.
 

DigDog

Lifer
Jun 3, 2011
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Since when did Apples suck? What did you do, bit into a Cider Apple?
No, i just buy fruit from Tesco, which is the local cheap supermarket. I havent had a decent apple .. well in months, but just because i went on holiday abroad, otherwise i could say years.

Bad banana > bad apple. Low-end apples are seriously inedible...

Havent got money for posh apples.
 

Jeeebus

Diamond Member
Aug 29, 2006
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I'll go with Envy or the Sweetango. I usually bring an apple to work with me as a mid-morning snack - one of the few fruits I eat frequently that I can't grow myself down here.
 

pmv

Lifer
May 30, 2008
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Egremont Russets (but they have to be at the correct degree of ripeness, as a variety they seem to be exceptionally dependent on that, otherwise they can be far too hard or turn to mulch). Coxes Pippens or Granny Smith's are decent and seem to have a larger window of ripeness.

All other apples I've tried are inferior. Golden delicious particularly so (most misleading marketing name ever, should be Yellowy Insipid). Not a fan of Gala or Pink Lady or Jazz apples any of those others which all seem far, far too sweet to me.
 

Alpha One Seven

Golden Member
Sep 11, 2017
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Granny Smith, no contest. Great with cheese.
0003338300159_A
 
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whm1974

Diamond Member
Jul 24, 2016
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No, i just buy fruit from Tesco, which is the local cheap supermarket. I havent had a decent apple .. well in months, but just because i went on holiday abroad, otherwise i could say years.

Bad banana > bad apple. Low-end apples are seriously inedible...

Havent got money for posh apples.
Don't they have Granny Smiths in the UK?
 

pmv

Lifer
May 30, 2008
12,969
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Doesnt the store that sells apples also sell fruit that doesnt suck, like bananas?? Or, you know, pears, lyches, mangos, cantaloupes, tangerines, kiwis, passion fruit, or ANYTHING which isnt like biting into acid-soaked cardboard?

Bananas are the most fattening of fruits! Also they are radioactive and hence glow in the dark (well, only very slightly, but still...). Also they will likely go extinct at some point owing to all being clones so don't get too fond of them.

Pears are just watery apples. I'm allergic to kiwis. Tangerines are just oranges that didn't go to college. Mangos are OK but messy to eat, ditto lychees.
 

whm1974

Diamond Member
Jul 24, 2016
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Bananas are the most fattening of fruits! Also they are radioactive and hence glow in the dark (well, only very slightly, but still...). Also they will likely go extinct at some point owing to all being clones so don't get too fond of them.

Pears are just watery apples. I'm allergic to kiwis. Tangerines are just oranges that didn't go to college. Mangos are OK but messy to eat, ditto lychees.
I disagree with bananas being fattening.
 

Alpha One Seven

Golden Member
Sep 11, 2017
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Bananas are the most fattening of fruits! Also they are radioactive and hence glow in the dark (well, only very slightly, but still...). Also they will likely go extinct at some point owing to all being clones so don't get too fond of them.

Pears are just watery apples. I'm allergic to kiwis. Tangerines are just oranges that didn't go to college. Mangos are OK but messy to eat, ditto lychees.
Papayas are good, we put them i mixed fruit salads all the time along with the others mentioned.
Ever try Dragonfruit? I also like Prickly pear fruits especially in jams.
 

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
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Doesnt the store that sells apples also sell fruit that doesnt suck, like bananas?? Or, you know, pears, lyches, mangos, cantaloupes, tangerines, kiwis, passion fruit, or ANYTHING which isnt like biting into acid-soaked cardboard?
You must have the scourge of red delicious over there too. Good apples aren't exciting, but they're convenient and satisfying. Bad apples like red delicious are almost worse than starving.
 

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
57,363
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I couldn't even say what the best orange would be.
I take this back. The best oranges I've had are from "heirloom" trees. They're limited release; in the spring I think, and they're the best oranges I've had. I don't know if the good flavor is because they come from old trees, or because they're more carefully selected to justify the premium price, but they're excellent.
 

Carson Dyle

Diamond Member
Jul 2, 2012
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I picked up a few tangerines the other day that were on stems, two and three per stem. No idea what variety, they were just labeled "tangerines". Reasonably priced at $1.49/pound and absolutely beautiful, I figured what the hell. Turned out fantastic. Small, but bigger than most clementines, seedless, easy to peel, juicy, sweet, with that great tanginess you expect from a tangerine. I'm going back today to grab a pile of them.
 
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snoopy7548

Diamond Member
Jan 1, 2005
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No, i just buy fruit from Tesco, which is the local cheap supermarket. I havent had a decent apple .. well in months, but just because i went on holiday abroad, otherwise i could say years.

Bad banana > bad apple. Low-end apples are seriously inedible...

Havent got money for posh apples.

You've clearly never had a bad banana. Try throwing one on the ground, waiting a few days, then trying to eat it.


You must have the scourge of red delicious over there too. Good apples aren't exciting, but they're convenient and satisfying. Bad apples like red delicious are almost worse than starving.

I must be weird because I like Red Delicious. I always buy Mcintosh but I'd never turn down a Red Delicious.
 

Jeeebus

Diamond Member
Aug 29, 2006
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Papayas are good, we put them i mixed fruit salads all the time along with the others mentioned.
Ever try Dragonfruit? I also like Prickly pear fruits especially in jams.

I have 3 dragonfruit 'trees' (vines I guess might be more accurate) which are arguably some of the best varieties - it's an awesome looking fruit, but even the sweetest of them are very light on flavor. I like them, but they're not winning any flavor awards.

Hawaiian papaya >>>>>>>>>>>>>> Caribbean papaya. We're doing our best to grow 6x Hawaiian papaya trees but it's a neverending battle with the army of iguanas that keep eating the trees.
 

Jeeebus

Diamond Member
Aug 29, 2006
9,178
894
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Bananas are the most fattening of fruits! Also they are radioactive and hence glow in the dark (well, only very slightly, but still...). Also they will likely go extinct at some point owing to all being clones so don't get too fond of them.

This is going to blow your mind, but there are hundreds of varieties of bananas. Cavendish (what you get in the grocery store) is in trouble with the various diseases attacking it worldwide but there are plenty of suitable alternatives.
 

pmv

Lifer
May 30, 2008
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This is going to blow your mind, but there are hundreds of varieties of bananas. Cavendish (what you get in the grocery store) is in trouble with the various diseases attacking it worldwide but there are plenty of suitable alternatives.

I concede I may not be fully informed on this matter! Though how easy would it be for large producers to switch variety if it came to it?
 

pmv

Lifer
May 30, 2008
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Hands down the pink lady is the best variety!

I don't agree with down-voting comments, but this thread keeps tempting me. You blaspheme!

It's russets, granny smiths and cox's. Others are not acceptable. Barring, perhaps, some variety I've never heard of - there are I assume a lot of non-mass-market varieties [or maybe varieties specific to certain countries or regions?] - but most of those people have mentioned that I'm familiar with are just too sweet.

At least nobody has said anything positive about 'golden delicious', so I don't feel I have to put anyone on 'ignore'.
 
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JoeyM

Senior member
Nov 18, 2003
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Honeycrisp is the best. I eat an apple every day and have to question anyone who hates them.
 
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