For a while a couple of years back I was an Apple geek (the fruit, not the computer).
It's good to see that the Gala, Braeburn and Fuji apples have already been mentioned.
If you can find them, Jazz apples[1] are a must-try. They are a cross between the Gala and the Braeburn, and the most amazingly crisp apple I've ever tried. I think the flavour isn't quite as good as a Gala, but that crispness is the complete opposite of the Red Delicious.
They are good looking apples, too.
The Pink Lady apple is also a good one. I think that might have my favorite flavour.
Yes, I second the Jazz recommendation. They are as good as, if not better than, Honeycrisp, and usually cheaper. SweeTango was supposed to rival Honeycrisp, but never lived up to the expectation, IMO.
I dunno about you - when I first tasted it, I thought SweeTango was like Honeycrisp on steroids. Although I fully concede that my reaction could have been like the folks in the study where they showed people rate more expensive wines higher than the cheaper ones.
They have over 30 varieties, many of which are very old and unusual. I'm a lover of crisp, tart apples, and they had one, sort of a cross between a Bramley and a Cox, which was one of the finest apples I have ever eaten.
I read the article, and I don't see where it says that Pink Lady isn't a variety. It mentions the marketing that Pink Lady is sold under, but I don't see where it contradicts the assumption that Pink Lady is a variety of apple. Just marketed and subjected to a certain quality standard.
Pink lady is an incredibly sufficient baking apple, but for raw flavor and texture (and admittedly there's some home town pride here), nothing has ever eclipsed a proper sized Honeycrisp for me.
Pink Lady (which I've just now learned is a brand name, and the variety is called Cripps Pink) was my favorite for a while, but I've just discovered Envy. Great stuff, I have one with breakfast every morning.
A fellow apple geek! (for me, the fruit and the computer)
I whole-heartedly agree on the Jazz apple! My current grocery store consistently has them in stock (which wasn't true of my prior one) so I'm a very happy camper.
Thanks for the Orange Pippin link. Going to check that out!
Even deep in Iris Murdoch's "The Sea, The Sea" you'll find the Cox being praised by the lead character for being a prince of apples, and putting all others in the shadows.
And very soon, it's Cox season again. What a delight.
Another interesting thing is how the size of the apple affects the flavor. My local super market sells two sizes of Fuji apples, 'Large' and 'Lunchbox'. For whatever reason, the large ones have exponentially better flavor than the smaller ones.
For a while a couple of years back I was an Apple geek (the fruit, not the computer).
It's good to see that the Gala, Braeburn and Fuji apples have already been mentioned.
If you can find them, Jazz apples[1] are a must-try. They are a cross between the Gala and the Braeburn, and the most amazingly crisp apple I've ever tried. I think the flavour isn't quite as good as a Gala, but that crispness is the complete opposite of the Red Delicious.
They are good looking apples, too.
The Pink Lady apple is also a good one. I think that might have my favorite flavour.
http://www.orangepippin.com/ is a good place to learn about the varities available.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz_(apple)