Baby Jazz Apples by The Marmot
TheGardenLady has discovered what seems to be the best apple on the market: The Jazz Apple!
I first discovered the apple in a package at Trader Joe’s. I had never seen this apple before and the apples in this bag were small, the size I like to eat out of hand. I figured that since I feel that I have to have my “apple a day to keep the doctor away” I might as well get it over with, with small apples anyway. So many apples sold in markets taste like a treatment, not a treat.
I couldn’t believe that first bite- crisp and sweet tart. Not like a lot of apples that are just sweet or not crisp. This apples was unbelievably delicious. Would it last? Would the apples hold up in the refrigerator? I was amazed that the entire bag remained crisp and tart- till the very last apple. I couldn’t believe that there was finally an apple worth eating again.
My last favorite apple had been the Stayman or Winesap- basically the same apple (see here). But for some reason, whether because they are kept in poor storage or they just doesn’t hold up in the supermarkets, the Winesaps are not good when I do find them. And I could rarely find an orchard that had them for sale freshly picked.
People would tell me they liked one or another apple, so I would try their suggestions. But they never really filled the old- fashioned apple bill. The apples sold in supermarkets today never tasted as good as the apples I grew up with. One is spoiled when one grows up on a farm. I believe there is a memory taste that is definitely stored in your brain. And when you find that old food taste or something that brings a great taste sensation, your memory knows. And this Jazz apple has brought the wonder of that taste sensation back to this GardenLady. I am writing this while eating the last of my Jazz apples.
The Jazz Apple was created in New Zealand where some of the best apples seem to originate. They say ” New Zealand married the Royal Gala to the Braeburn. They added the Braeburn’s lively zip to the Royal Gala’s sassy sweetness”.
I bought my second batch of Jazz Apples from another grocery store. And the same delicious taste and wonderful crunch is in this batch. None of that mealy, insipidness that one comes to think of in grocery store apples.
I haven’t tried baking with these apples yet; they are so delicious I just want to eat them fresh. But the website that promotes the apple says chefs love them for baking.
I wish I were their spokeswoman.
You could be their spokesperson! I am equally excited to find these jazzy new little apples. I take a sack lunch everyday to eat with my preschool class, and I’m glad to find a fun fruit for modeling good nutrition.