Apricots - Best for flavour?

[TJ1]

Hi all,
Lots of fascinating information on this forum!

There seem to be a huge number of newer Apricot cultivars around, most of the information about them is only from the breeder.

I am looking to grow some under protection (in the UK) and incorporate some into a breeding project that includes some interspecific crosses. Flavour is very important to me, something that I feel has been lost from some of the commercial selections.

It would be great to hear what everyone’s favourite cultivar or two is for flavour (ideally also noting what other cultivars you have grown/compared them to).
It would be particularly interesting to get views/comparisons on the newer selections.

I am also very interested in the red Apricots, I saw very positive comments about ‘Stromboli’, are there any others that compare favorably ? What is the next best option?

Thanks!

[Richard]

@TJ1
See this post:

Stan's harvest diary 2022

The summer of 2022 was extremely busy for me. A lot of my trees had strong production, but the main reason was that my wife traveled for two months during the summer, and I had to deal with all that harvest by myself (on top of my full-time job and all other stuff). In particular, both apricot and plum harvests were very strong and they pretty much followed each other. So I really didn’t have time to write about fruit during the harvest season. Now, I would like to offer some fragmentary observ…

[MinnesotaApricot]

The best-tasting apricot varieties won’t survive well in the UK because they are adapted for arid climates. Most US commercial varieties are developed for California because that’s where they are grown. Quality breeding programs also need to incorporate genetics for disease resistances and (if applicable) frost resistance.

Better varieties for the UK will be those those that perform well in the Pacific Northwest and New England. Top picks by growers here are OrangeRed and Tomcot flavor-wise, and, for hardiness, Hoyt Montrose, Alfred, Puget Gold, Rutger’s releases, and the Harrow Series.

Bob Purvis is on of the foremost apricot experts in the world and can help you identify varieties that have performed well in the UK. You can contact him by email.

"Best" apricot for New England (6b)?

If you want small-ish tree, then you can try Pixie Cot, the genetic dwarf. I planted it this spring. I cannot tell anything about it yet, except that it definitely grows more slowly then my Chinese sweet pit apricot. And I wanted a really small tree, because it grows under the wires.

Scotts Stone Fruit Experiences Through 2022

There were some requests for an update to my last stone fruit report in 2015 … here it is! One thing I should mention is many of these are unusual types, I get excited about something different. I grew many flat peaches, honey peaches, red-fleshed peaches, white apricots, etc. Many of these unusual kinds I still like. I also grew a great many heirlooms, a few were interesting but over the years I have phased out most of them due to various flaws. For the first ten or so years of my orchard …

Apricots

[mrsg47]

I am in the south of France. I grow rouge de roussillion. A very excellent apricot that you can

import.

[Ahmad]

For cots that are commonly available in USA, Blenheim has excellent flavor. I think it originated in the UK. I hear Moorpark is excellent too, and it too originated in the UK.

Tomcot is another excellent variety that I believe is available in the UK.

[TJ1]

Thank you for the responses.

Has anyone been able to grow/taste/compare a range of the red apricot cultivars (I see that there are at least 9 listed by PSB - Apricots - PSB Producción vegetal)

Thanks