originally posted by Jeff Grossman:
originally posted by Jeff Grossman:
Tasting notes soon...
There were four of us at the tasting, which means the equivalent of 3 apples each. So, to make it a dinner we added some bread (French sour tourte), crackers, a few cheeses (herbed chevre, emmentaler, brie) and a bit of meat (truffle pate, sliced prosciutto, peppered salami).
I presented the apples in the order that the orchard packed them:
Ashmead's Kernel - A fine apple with which to begin. Russeted all over, tingly acidity when bitten, texture neither very hard nor very soft (and texture will turn out to be very important to this crowd), but not strongly flavored. Generally well-liked by the group. If I were presented a basket of mixed apples I might choose this.
Tolman Sweet - Supposedly a yellow apple but our specimen was green. The texture was soft, like a McIntosh. One person called it "sandy". Very perfumed and floral flesh with a hint of lavendar.
Newtown Pippin - This apple snaps when you bite it, which makes it very popular hereabouts. Vivid apple flavor. It's known as the 18th C's answer to the Granny Smith, and it's the group's AOTN.
Pitmaston Pineapple - Tiny russeted thing. The orchard actually sent three pieces because they fit in the slot in the box meant for one normal-size apple. I can see why someone thought it reminded him of pineapple; there is some non-apple-y sweet flavor in there but, really, it's not very distinct. The flesh was soft, too. We all agreed that it would be really cool to find and eat these while on a hike but wouldn't pick them from my theoretical mixed basket.
Winter Banana - Another apple with a hint of some other fruit in its flavor profile. Our specimen was pretty bland.
Doctor Matthews - Softest apple yet. Pleasant enough but definitely not exciting.
Northern Spy - Much better apple than the Dr. Matthews. It has more texture and more flavor. Several of us remember buying these as children.
Hudson's Golden Gem - This is comparable to a bosc pear in texture, crispness, sweetness, and flavor.
Snow (aka Fameuse) Apple - Indeed, the flesh is brilliantly white with an herbal aroma wafting up from the plate. My closest match is tarragon but if you told me sage or dried basil that could pass muster. A little soft but interesting.
Baldwin - Oh, I know this is a semi-standard one and supposed to be good but this one merits no more than "yup, that's an apple".
Westfield Seek-No-Further - Ya gotta love those old-fashioned named. Whoever named this one was pretty confident that he had a winner. We didn't agree so much. Huge and shiny red. Good flavor but, with the edge well off our hunger, it was evident that this apple lacked good acidity and lacked good crunch.
Arkansas Black - OK, here's where all the crunch went. I had to push hard with the knife, and you could hear the snap whenever someone bit into a piece. Not quite as hard as a raw potato. The skin is, indeed, really dark. It didn't have much flavor but I will give it credit for not being overly sweet.
We did not do a formal vote but it was clear that the first three apples were preferred over the others, and that the second three apples were less desirable than the others.
Of course, we served cider with the meal:
Etienne Dupont 2009 Cidre Bouche Brut de Normandie, organic, unpasteurized, unfiltered, 5% - Instantly recognizable, this is the uncompromisingly dry, horsey-smelling cider that the French always make. An acquired taste.
Crispin "Landsdowne" Artisanal Reserve, made with stout yeasts and molasses, unfiltered, 6.9% - A godawful over-sweetened beery mess. One sip was more than enough. DNPIM.
Aspall English Demi-Sec Draft Cider, 6.8% - Passable. Sweet. Kinda flat, though.
Martinelli's Gold Medal Sparkling Cider, no alcohol - Apple juice with bubbles, but really good apple juice.
