the definitive apple taste test
what does apple even taste like?
apple season is upon us, and the variety in stores this year has been frankly overwhelming - which to use for baking? which to snack on? which to never ever eat again?
the only way out of the confusion is to buy one of each apple variety i could find (sixteen if you’re counting) and do three rounds of testing:
raw (for snacking)
baked uncovered (i.e. for an apple tart)
baked covered (i.e. for an apple pie filling)
samples were tasted, reviewed and scored for each test
at the end of it all, scored were summed up and we had five winners!
the five best apple varieties that this kitchen would buy again and again to eat raw, in tarts, pies, cakes and everything else between
test one - raw
all apples were brought fresh on the same morning and sampled at room temperature
they were rated either 1 (would buy again to eat raw) or 0 (would rather not)
it was incredible to compare so many apples side by side - there was so much variety in texture, flavour, juiciness and sweetness!
the highlights were the kissabel with such a beautiful colour! it was shockingly tannic and dry. tasting notes say a great apple for adults
the bravo (also deep red) was crisp, juicy, and tasted like essence of apple
the smitten was very sweet, crunchy and described as a guilty pleasure apple
there were also some shockers that i would rather never eat again! these included the modi which had a strong grape aftertaste (ew) and the royal gala with its soft and floury texture, the classic school camp apple
this is heavily biased by personal preference, but generally this kitchen tended to prefer crisp apples with a medium sweetness and some tartness to balance things out
test two - baked uncovered
apple sections were baked uncovered at 180°C for 20 minutes, cooled for 5 minutes, and then sampled
some apples came alive with a bit of heat, and others really disappointed!
the highlights were the envy which pulled through with amazing buttery flavour and a lovely firm texture
the bravo had a strong apple flavour and good juiciness, and the jazz had a great al dente texture and tasted as if it had already been dusted in cinnamon and baked into a pie
disappointingly, the classic granny smith, normally my go-to baking apple, this disintegrated into mush in the oven!
other duds were the mi apple - more like meh apple, this tasted of nothing, and the kanzi which turned itself into applesauce, but had great flavour!
as a general trend, apples that rated highly when raw tended to keep their rating when baked uncovered, likely due to the preference for strong, crisp apples
test three - baked covered
25g of each apple variety was diced, and tossed with 0.25 tsp (or 5% by weight for those playing at home) of caster sugar
no spices, butter, or starch (e.g. cornflour or flour) were added
the filling samples were packed into tins and covered with a puff pastry lid to make sure they steamed (as if in a pie)
they were baked at 180°C for 25 minutes, cooled for 30 minutes, and then sampled
the kissabel made everything around it a gorgeous pink colour, and had a lovely strong apple flavour
the ambrosia lived up to its name with complex flavour, juiciness and firm texture
curiously, the fuji which was lovely and juicy when baked uncovered was unpleasantly wet and squishy when under a puff pastry lid
results
after tasting 3.5kg of apples in one morning, the absolute favourites were the kissabel, the bravo, the envy, the ambrosia and the jazz
interestingly, the classics (aka the pink lady and the granny smith) performed really poorly in comparison with their newer, sexier cousins
a snapshot of the full tasting notes and scoring is below
stay tuned for part two: the perfect apple pie?
Very interesting!