North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Sam Franc <franc@oregonfast.net>]

list@ginda.us wrote:

> I've eaten three of them:  Ashmead's Kernal, Braeburn, and 
> Gravenstein.  I (and the rest of my family) loved Ashmead's kernal, 
> which is sweet, tart, crunchy, and good-flavored.  But I'd never grow 
> it commercially as it's also small, ugly, somewhat russeted, and tends 
> to be misshapen.  the only "eating apple" that I've tried that is 
> smaller is the lady apple.  I liked Braeburn well enough, but didn't 
> love it.  The sample I had was probably over-ripe.  It is also a sour 
> apple, and the flavor is nice.  It's supposed to be a cooking apple, 
> but I haven't tried that.  I keep trying Gravenstein because people 
> (on this list) say nice things about it, and I keep being 
> disappointed.  I may be eating it too late in the season.  I've had 
> both Gravenstein and Red Gravenstein, and they are similar.  They are 
> soft, sour, and have okay flavor.  They made perfectly fine sauce, but 
> nothing that we got excited about.  (The pink gravensteins, which we 
> cooked with their skins, made a nice pink sauce.)

You definitely waited too long.
G. has to be picked early for its great
flavor.
Sam