Apples to Apples

For years, the only apple varieties I knew of were Red Delicious and Golden Delicious. That's all I remember mom bringing home from the store or seeing in the store. Always hoping for crisp deliciousness, but so often being let down with a mealy, unflavorful bite, I had no early appreciation for apples. Sometime in college I discovered Granny Smith and what a difference that made. Consistently tart and crisp, they became my go to apple. But I still didn't choose apples that often.

Flash back about ten years ago, a significant other who was instrumental in bringing bunnies and my beloved dog into my life, also introduced me to some new varieties of apples. I had a previous s.o. to thank for my appreciation of mango, avocado, and banana pancakes, but that's another story. Fuji and Gala entered my apple vocabulary and pushed Granny Smith aside. Never having done a side by side taste test, Fuji and Gala seem pretty similar to me. Their biggest appeel being a more balanced sweetness. Frankly, Granny Smith had started to seem tough on the outside and a bit pushy with its acidic, in your face flavor.

Then five years ago I had what I can only call a spiritual experience over an apple. On layover in the Heathrow airport, hungry, tired, and lonely on my way to or from India - I can't remember which way I was going, being under the terminal effect. Airport terminals always feel like Vegas (and I don't care for Vegas) to me - all artificial lighting so that time stands interminably still, few reminders of the natural world, and people, including myself, spaced out and disconnected, mindlessly moving through life. A generally soul sucking experience. So there I was looking for something to eat after spending untold hours in flight and on impulse I selected an apple from the basket at one of the endlessly similar book/magazine/snack vendors.

I took the first bite while walking and had to find a place to sit and enjoy the rest of it. I'd never tasted an apple so delicious. Had no idea they could be this good. The perfect combination of sweet/tart/juicy/crisp wrapped in a peel that was firm, but yielded well to the bite. Had I saved the sticker? What kind of apple was this? Braeburn! Who knew an apple good be amazing. Gala and Fuji paled in comparison.

Since then, I've been sampling new to me varieties of apple, but so far, none have supplanted the mighty Braeburn. Jonagold, Rome, and Jonathan, Macintosh, and most recently Pinova. Of those, my least favorite was the Pinova, with its floral overtones. Of late the Honeycrisp has surged onto the apple scene, and I finally tried one this year. Perhaps my expectations were too high because of all the hype. Honeycrisp was good, but in that you remind me of the one I like better kind of way.

My parting thought about apples is that I choose organic. I suppose there may be some personal benefits, perhaps they taste better or have higher nutrient values than conventional, though there are conflicting reports on that. When I buy organic I am supporting sustainable agriculture practices and the health of the planet, important values, which are worth a little sacrifice (extra $ at the checkout) on my part.