Apple Varieties

• Baldwin Apple: An all-purpose red-skinned apple, mottled and streaked with yellow, with a mildly sweet-tart flavor, fairly crisp texture, from the New York region, available from October to April.

• Cortland Apple: All-purpose red apple with crisp, juicy, sweet-tart flesh that resists browning, smooth shiny red skin, a Northwest favorite good for cooking and hand-eating.

• Crabapple: Small, rosy red, hard tart flesh, too sour for hand-eating, makes great jellies, jams and good with pork and poultry, available during the fall months.

• Criterion Apple: Slightly tart, bright red skin with green highlights, good for baking and hand-eating.

• Gala Apple: Brilliant rosy red skin. Firm and crisp, sweet and juicy, the Gala apple is good for pies as well as eating out of hand. Available September through June.

• Golden Delicious Apple: Yellow to yellow-green, sweet/bland flavor, juicy and crisp flesh that resists browning, all-purpose but do lose some flavor when cooked, available September through June. Refrigerated storage time: 150 days.

• Granny Smith Apple: Crisp, juicy, freckled green skin, sweetly tart flesh, excellent for hand-eating and cooking, grown in New Zealand, Australia, California and Arizona so usually available year-round. Refrigerated storage time: 240 days.

• Gravenstein Apple: Crisp, juice, sweet-tart, green-skin streaked with red, all-purpose for cooking but not whole, available mainly on the U.S. West coast from August to late September.

• Jonathan Apple: Spicy and fragrant, juicy, sweet-tart, all-purpose cooking except for whole, good for hand-eating, available September through February. Refrigerated storage time: 120 days.

• Lady Apple: Tiny, ranging from brilliant red to yellow with red blushing, sweet-tart, good for hand-eating or cooking, available canned, used for garnishes, available fresh during winter months.

• Macoun Apple: Small to medium-sized, wine red in color, crisp, juicy, sweet-tart, all-purpose but best for hand-eating, a U.S. East coast favorite.

• McIntosh Apple: Medium-sized, crisp, tart-sweet, bright red skin sometimes tinged with green, all-purpose but doesn't hold up to lengthy cooking, discovered in the late 1700's by Canadian John McIntosh, available September through March.

• Northern Spy Apple: Large, sweet-tart apple, red skin with yellow streaking, all-purpose, available October through March, also called spy apple.

• Pippin Apple: All-purpose, good for hand-eating and cooking, greenish-yellow skin, juicy, crisp flesh, slightly tart, also called Newton pippin or yellow pippin, available winter through mid-spring.

• Red Delicious Apple: Large, brilliant red, sometimes streaked with green, elongated shape with five distinctive knobs at its base, juicy, sweet, no distinguishable tartness, recommended for hand-eating but not for cooking, available from September through April. Refrigerated storage time: 160 days.

• Rhode Island Greening Apple: Medium-sized, green to yellow in color, sweet-tart flavor which intensifies with cooking, good for hand-eating, mostly sold as a commercial crop for applesauce, pies etc., since both flavor and texture hold up well to heat, available October to April primarily in the eastern and central U.S. The western variant is known as Northwest Greening.

• Rome Beauty Apple: Deep red skin with some yellow speckling, off-white flesh ranging from tender to mealy, mildly tart to sweet and bland, holds its shape well when cooked and as such is good for baked apples or cooked dishes, available November through May. Refrigerated storage time: 220 days.

• Stayman Apple: Striped, dull red color, off-white flesh, juicy, crisp, tart, good for hand-eating and cooking, available from October to April.

• Winesap Apple: Juicy, tart, crisp yellowish flesh with a deep red skin, all-purpose, stores well, available from November through May. Refrigerated storage time: 220 days.

• York Imperial Apple: Medium to large in size, firm flesh, tartly sweet, red with yellowish streaks, off-white flesh, excellent for cooking whole as it keeps its shape, available October through April.

• Kendall Apple: Cross between McIntosh and Zusoff
• Spartan Apple: McIntosh and Yellow Newtown mix
• Idared Apple: Jonathan and Wagner mix. Refrigerated storage time: 200 days.
• Jondel Apple: Jonathan and Delicious mix

For a helpful description of other varieties, visit Apple Variety Evaluations from the Virginia Cooperative Extension.

• Apple Selection and Storage
• Apple Varieties
• Apple Equivalents, Measures, and Substitutions
• Apple History
• Apples and Health
• Apple Recipes
Apples Photo © 2006 Peggy Trowbridge Filippone, licensed to About.com, Inc.