Our Apples: Varieties, Uses & Flavor Profiles
Baking - We recommend apples that hold their shape when baked, so we look for firmer textures and more tart flavors. A touch of acidity helps balance the sweetness in pies, crisps, and other baked goods.
Eating - While taste is always personal, we generally suggest apples with a crisp bite and natural sweetness for fresh eating. That said, any apple is the right one if you love how it tastes!
Sauce - For smooth, flavorful apple sauce, we favor softer apples that cook down quickly. Sweet varieties work well for no-sugar-added sauce, while tart apples are great for a more traditional, tangy flavor.
Salad - Apples for salads or charcuterie boards should resist browning once sliced. Tart, high-acid apples oxidize more slowly, but any variety can work with a splash of lemon juice to keep slices looking fresh.
Cortland
Cortland apples are known for their flat shape and early-season versatility. Slightly tart with a light crunch, they’re great for pies when fresh and ideal for sauce as they soften later in the season.
Parentage: McIntosh × Ben Davis
Recommended Uses: Baking, Sauce
Crimson Crisp
Crimson Crisp delivers bold, balanced flavor and an impressive crunch that lasts. It’s firm enough for baking but sweet enough for fresh eating, making it one of our most versatile early fall apples.
Recommended Uses: Baking, Eating
Evercrisp
Sweet, dense, and incredibly crunchy, Evercrisp lives up to its name — staying fresh for months when stored properly. A Honeycrisp-Fuji cross, it’s our favorite late-season apple for snacking.
Parentage: Honeycrisp × Fuji
Recommended Uses: Eating
Fuji
With a crisp texture and signature honeyed sweetness, Fuji apples are a favorite for kids and adults alike. They’re perfect for packing, snacking, or enjoying straight off the tree.
Parentage: Ralls Janet × Red Delicious
Recommended Uses: Eating
Gala
Gala apples are small, sweet, and highly snackable — perfect for kids’ lunches or a light afternoon treat. Their thin skin and mellow flavor make them a gentle introduction to apple season.
Parentage: Kidd’s Orange Red × Golden Delicious
Recommended Uses: Eating
Ginger Gold
One of the first apples to ripen, Ginger Gold offers a smooth bite and mild tart-sweet flavor. It’s crisp early on and mellows beautifully — a great season opener.
Recommended Uses: Eating
Gold Rush
GoldRush balances high sugar and acidity for a bold, tangy bite. It’s an outstanding late-season apple for pies and fresh eating, and it also makes a bright, flavorful cider.
Recommended Uses: Baking, Eating
Golden Delicious
This classic variety is prized for its gentle sweetness and soft texture. It’s great for eating and perfect for making no-sugar-added sauce thanks to its naturally mellow flavor.
Recommended Uses: Eating, Sauce
Granny Smith
Firm and tart, Granny Smith apples are a baking favorite for good reason. Their bright green skin and sharp flavor hold up beautifully in pies, crisps, and cobblers.
Recommended Uses: Baking
Holiday
Holiday apples combine sweet-tart balance with a subtle spice note, making them a standout for baking or fresh eating. A cross between Jonathan and Macoun, they’re well-loved by our regulars.
Parentage: Jonathan × Macoun
Recommended Uses: Baking, Eating
Honeycrisp
Honeycrisp is our most popular apple — ultra-juicy with a signature sweet snap. It’s a fantastic fresh-eating apple and holds up well in crisps or pies, making it both delicious and versatile.
Parentage: Keepsake × Unknown
Recommended Uses: Baking, Eating
Jonagold
Jonagold combines the sweet richness of Golden Delicious with the tart zing of Jonathan. Its juicy bite and well-rounded flavor make it a go-to for fresh eating and fall recipes.
Parentage: Jonathan × Golden Delicious
Recommended Uses: Eating
Jonathan
Jonathan apples are a heritage variety with bold, tangy flavor. Their softer texture makes them especially suited for applesauce or cider — full of old-fashioned apple taste.
Recommended Uses: Sauce
Ludacrisp
Ludacrisp stands out with wild tropical notes of pineapple and Juicy Fruit gum. It’s sweet, juicy, and full of flavor — a fun apple to bite into, especially fresh.
Parentage: Honeycrisp × Unknown
Recommended Uses: Eating
MacIntosh
MacIntosh apples are soft and aromatic, perfect for sauce. They break down quickly when cooked, delivering smooth texture and a traditional apple flavor.
Recommended Uses: Sauce
Macoun
Macoun blends the softness of MacIntosh with a richer flavor from Jersey Black. It’s excellent for sauces or slicing into salads where its sweet-tart flavor shines.
Parentage: MacIntosh × Jersey Black
Recommended Uses: Sauce, Salad
Melrose
As Ohio’s state apple, Melrose is a well-rounded favorite. It offers firm flesh and a traditional sweet-tart flavor that performs well in baking or enjoyed fresh.
Parentage: Jonathan × Delicious
Recommended Uses: Baking, Eating
Northern Spy
A favorite for pies, Northern Spy apples hold their shape beautifully and aren’t overly juicy. Their balanced tartness makes them ideal for baking.
Recommended Uses: Baking
Paula Red
One of our first apples of the season, Paula Red is mildly tart and soft — perfect for a smooth August applesauce. It shares traits with its parent, MacIntosh.
Recommended Uses: Sauce
Pink Lady
Pink Lady apples are crisp with a beautiful pink blush and a vibrant sweet-tart flavor. Excellent for fresh eating and stunning in baked goods.
Parentage: Golden Delicious × Lady Williams
Recommended Uses: Baking, Eating
Pixie Crunch
Pixie Crunch packs big, sweet flavor into a small package. With crisp texture and bright red skin, it’s a favorite for kids and makes an excellent early-season lunchbox apple.
Recommended Uses: Eating
Premier Honeycrisp
Premier Honeycrisp offers the same juicy crunch and sweet flavor as regular Honeycrisp but ripens several weeks earlier. Its shelf life is slightly shorter due to warmer harvest timing.
Parentage: Keepsake × Unknown
Recommended Uses: Eating
Rosalee
Rosalee delivers a juicy crunch and subtle floral flavor that comes from its Honeycrisp and Fuji lineage. A beautifully balanced apple perfect for eating fresh.
Parentage: Honeycrisp × Fuji
Recommended Uses: Eating
Shizuka
Shizuka is a delightfully sweet green apple with low acidity and a crisp, gentle bite. Known for its large size — often over a pound — it’s perfect for those who prefer mellow sweetness.
Parentage: Golden Delicious × Indo
Recommended Uses: Eating
SnapDragon
Developed in New York, SnapDragon is crisp and snappy with a sweet flavor that makes it a standout snacking apple. Its dense texture gives it a satisfying crunch.
Parentage: Honeycrisp offspring
Recommended Uses: Eating
Sweet Maia
Our first truly sweet apple of the season, Sweet Maia is crisp, juicy, and perfect for kicking off back-to-school snacking. Kids love its gentle sweetness.
Parentage: Sunrise × Honeycrisp
Recommended Uses: Eating
Transparent
Transparent is the very first apple harvested each year. With soft texture and sharp tartness, it’s ideal for early-season applesauce and traditional home-style cooking.
Recommended Uses: Sauce
Winesap
This heirloom apple dates back to the 1800s. Winesap has dense flesh, deep red skin, and a bold tart flavor that shines in pies. Its thick skin makes it ideal for winter storage.
Recommended Uses: Baking
Zestar
Zestar is a zingy early-season apple with a sweet-tart flavor and good crunch. It softens over time but remains a favorite for eating fresh or baking in August.
Parentage: State Fair × MN selection
Recommended Uses: Baking, Eating
