1993 APPLE TASTING RESULTS

By Pam Neiswanger Warner

 

Many thanks to Jay Dearborn and Dearborn Farms for their bountiful support of our 1993 Anchorage-area apple tasting!!

 

And thanks also to Tom Marshall, Elmer Jeske, Hugh Harris, Erik Simpson, Don Cox, Arvid Miller, and Bob Boyer for sharing their summer harvest with everyone! Once again, the weather was awful and the apples were delicious! There were over 20 varieties of apples available to taste (and one green Compass cherry plum), and 18 people turned in their evaluation sheets so that I could report their opinions here. As in past years, the apples from the Valley were a couple of weeks ahead of Anchorage, which means some of the apples were overripe and some were still green—and some were big, beautiful, and delectable!

 

I have compiled the results of 18 individual taste ratings (based on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being best), and the key to reading the table is as follows: take this year’s highest rated apple, Summerred; one person did not rate it, one rated it as a “5”, one as a “6”, etc.

 

ALASKA PIONEER FRUIT GROWERS

Alaska Chapter, North American Fruit Explorers (NAFEX)

1993 APPLE TASTING RESULTS

Taste Rating, 1-10. With 10 Being Best

 

Apple Variety N 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10                                             Comments/Description
Yellow Transparent       4 4 2 3 4     1 17th of 21           Mushy, dry, but tasty (overripe)
Geneva Early 1         1 4 4 2 3 3 2nd
Yellow Jay       1 1 3 3 3* 5 2   9th          Mildly tart, very nice texture, distinctive
Westland     1 4 2 3* 3 5       18th
Oriole (Tom Marshall)         1 2 1 4 5 3 2 3rd                                         Firm, juicy, very good
Summered 1         1 1 2 2 5 6 1st                                                 Rated best tasting
Quality Crab 1   4 4   6 1   2     21st
Oriole (Elmer Jeske) 4       1 2 2 2 5 1 1 7th
Mantet 1     1 2 2 4 3 4 1   11th                                   Needed 1 -2 more weeks
Canada Red       2 2 3 5 3 2   1 12th
Norda           1 7   5 3 2 4th
Parkland         1 2 3 3 3 5 1 5th
Mantet 3 1 1 1 4 1 4 3       19th                                                          Not yet ripe
Northland     2 1 3 5* 1 4 1   1 14th
Rescue Crab 3       3 3 1 5   2 1 10th
Chinese Golden Early 2 2 1 2 5 1 1 2 1 1   20th                                                               Overripe
Ginger Gold   1 1 2 2 2 4 1 3 1 1 13th                                                               Overripe
Summer Rambo 2   1 1 2 1 4 2 2 2 1 16th
Dolgo Crab (Don Cox) 4 1 1 1 3 2   3 2   1 15th
Unknown (Hugh Harris) 3       1   3 4 5 2   6th        Tart, but with very nice texture (not ripe)
Unknown Crab (Arvid Miller) 6       2 1 4   2 1 2 8th                           Nice, sweet, slightly distinctive

 

Entries in the “N” column indicate individuals who did not assign a score to the apple in question.

*In each instance, the asterisk represents one person who scored at +.5 (7,5, 5.5., 5.5, respectively).