Cosmic Crisps are easily my favorite. I do love seeing the different opinions on them though. I am very jealous of those who can grow them, considering their commercial status. That’s a dream apple right there.
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Not at all. Quality is all over the place.
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Sometimes I get some that are the best apples I’ve ever tasted. Sometimes they’re mediocre.
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Farms will sell bigger apples as #1s and smaller ones as #2s, with a premium for the former. Now, supermarkets may be mixing them together and selling them at the same price. Having said that, most of the time, size has nothing to do with quality, large size can be achieved by overwatering and smaller size is due to lack of thinning, both actions result in bland taste. For a home grower, if you thin well, you will get big apples of very good taste
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Apples should be tasted tested within a couple weeks of picking unless the apples are specifically grown as keeper apples.
The ones I tried were already faded out in 8 weeks and had some weird aftertaste funk going on. Some apples fade out more gracefully than others. The Cosmic Crisp doesn’t age well.
The Evercrisp loses acidity, but becomes sweet. No foul funk aftertaste.
I would prefer a bushel of Winesaps over a bushel of Cosmic Crisp anytime.
I’ll just note the legal strictures/patent on them expire Jan 2027, entirely as I read it. They could potentially be hitting big box stores, given their popularity at the grocers.
At very least specialty nurseries.
This especially would seem likely to happen, as while I’ve heard mixed reports, most are stating they are a Zone 4 hardy cultivar. Hmm. Honey crisp is 4a/4b and Enterprise 4b/5a in my limited (I’m a newbie here) experience.
I’m reading this thread and trying to catch implications around where they will grow.
170 days on the tree is far more limiting/defining than low temp hardiness. Definitely not going to get 170 days after peak bloom in areas with big temp swings.
Thoughts?
The patent experation date has been adjusted to 2032
USPP24210P3 - Apple tree named ‘WA 38’ - Google Patents
Yeah, I thought they could only be grown in Washington state due to patent restrictions , I thought they were really good at first, but they’re so large and to me a gala just as good and smaller
One of my favorite things I noticed about cosmic crisp is the flesh doesn’t brown when exposed to the air. What I mean is, my daughter will not eat any apple that starts to brown in her lunch. She has an expander in her pallet and braces and cannot easily bite into whole apples if I do not cut them. These can sit on the counter overnight cut open and not brown just like Opal apples can. If a take a browning prone apple and douse it with citrus juice she complains that they are too tart. These cosmic crisp school lunch cut apples are a life saver in my situation.
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dang. 2032… that is a little ridiculous. Does market (in the economic sense not farmer’s) have them licensing it to nurseries? I couldn’t find details on what it “meant” by that. I guess up to them?
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From the link Lordkiwi posted acids of the type they measure jumped from 0.42 to 0.62 (grams/100ml) so rounded off very close to half again more.
So you’d think that is it, but Enterprise is listed as 0.68, so still higher. In Canada we don’t see that “Enterprise” as a retail label, but I’m hearing in this thread that is an subtype of McIntosh? Would it be resistant to browning? Or is there another factor.
I will say my favourite apple by far, but I have eaten so many I may be tired of them. One thing I like I don’t think I’ve seen in writing is the last little bit around the core is sour. Kind of nice to have two flavours, given it is admitedly a fairly “simple” flavoured apple.
And to whoever said the skin is thick… that could be an advantage commercially for handling, so not necessarily an accident.
Anyway, anyone know if they’d grow in 4a? 
When they are left to fully ripen on the tree as a late apple, they can be very good. But also some years they have been buggy for us. Still evaluating
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The apple was developed by Washington State University, with the sole purpose in mind to rejuvenate the Washington State Apple industry now that Red delicious has fallen out of favor.
They hoped in a way to recreate the success of The University of Minnesota when they released Honeycrisp. But with the benefit of hindsight be a little smarter about it.
Honeycrisp only earned the UoM around 11 million before the patent expired. Washington state spent 10 million in marketing early.
Cosmic Crisp is currently licensed only to Washington State growers and residents. $1 per tree and 4.75% sale price per box. The later is the club apple fee. Others will be able to grow it eventually but will not be able to use the name.
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One of the things I’ve noticed in the last I would say six months is the price drop has been considerable. I shop Fruit sales all over town. Last week I got some cosmic crisp for $.89 a pound. I usually pay about $.99 a pound. I am lucky to find gala for a dollar a pound you get more gala because they’re smaller but still.
Is patenting on fruit tree varieties, especially those created by universities which receive public funds is that a good thing?
I would like to hear from some Orchard people. I really don’t have an opinion. I can see both sides.
You would think the patenting would drive up the Price consumers pay at the grocery store. However, at least in the case of cosmic crisp, I’ve seen the exact opposite effect it is the most inexpensive Apple to purchase, especially if you look for sale prices. So I really don’t know.
Fruit tree patents last 20 years. It seems reasonable given the time and cost of development. Most of the time the fees to get a tree are not crazy and they’re reasonably available and you can pay a fee per tree or to propagate.
In the case of Cosmic Crisp, they put extra restrictions on it. Only people in WA can have a tree. One of the only ways to make money off apples at this point is to make them exclusive somehow. They decided to make it available to everyone in Washington State because the taxpayers funded the effort. If you want to sell trademarked Cosmic Crisp apples commercially there are more restrictions.
There are other patented apples that only certain special licensed growers can grow and sell. Lots of people have very strong feelings about these. I understand why they do it - they want to protect their investment and the product and control the quality (eg. sugar bee). Or they want to fund the research and trials they’re doing (eg. MAIA and evercrisp).
There are also trademarked apples where to sell the apple with the trademarked name you have to meet certain qualifications (eg. pink lady vs. cripps pink) so that the apple remains one people want to eat.
The price of apples has been problematic for a few years. It’s a known issue. I find it really interesting. It reminds me of the salmon fishing issues of 20 years ago. I feel really bad for smaller family commercial operations trying to produce apples - but also find the whole thing a bit fascinating.
There is more apple production than people are eating and exports have had issues (especially in the last two years with tariff things). Some Cosmic crisp apples are in storage for 18 months before being sold because there has been so much oversupply.
The other big factor causing apple price issues is that some big companies bought and consolidated a lot of smaller farms (Goldman Sachs for one). They are able to put huge amounts of money into putting in loads of new trees, making technology investments, that smaller operations couldn’t afford to fund upfront or get a loan for. It doesn’t matter to these big guys if they lose money for a few years. With all their new trees and fancy equipment they’re able to sell huge numbers of apples at tiny margins that would put a family farm out of business.
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Some Cosmic crisp apples are in storage for 18 months before being sold because there has been so much oversupply.
Brilliant. Invest a pile in a name and apple, then turn around and sell it in piss poor shape and soil the Cosmic name and the apple industry as a whole.
The success of the Gala and Honeycrisp was due to the Red Delicious being sold in a horrible state. This is such common knowledge. The Cosmic is the new RD from my perspective.
I will pay $2 a pound for a good apple, a rare apple.
The locally grown Evercrisp apples are awesome. The NW apples like the Ambrosia and Cosmic Crisp I’ve tried look good, but taste like faded chemicals, solder flux.
I just finished up a large bag of York Imperial apples grown locally in SW VA. 5 months in the fridge, and they’re still stable. I’d buy some again if my crops failed.
The Crimson Crisp is ok for pies as long as they’re eaten quick. No good for pie filling. The Ark Black is a better fresh pie apple and makes better pie filling. It also holds together better in pork stir fries.
I have no use for the Cosmic Crisp in the manner they’re being sold. Total fail.
The PNW must be in some kind of echo chamber.
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We do not fund our universities and expect there research to provide for the common good. Pure research is unheard off in this day and age of not my dollar.
USDA Corvallis has lost its head currator and its assistance currator left last week. Publicly funded institution for the public good and its the victim of budget cuts, because you know who is going to pay for it.
University of Minnesota is facing a 6.5% rise in tuition and a 7% budget cut.
They earned 10 millioion from developing HoneyCrisp
Washington State Is slated to earn more from CosmicCrips then Uni of Minnesota ever did. What they do with that money I do not know.
But its better they have revenue from there efforts then to be subject to handouts good will and questions about if they are worth sending moeny too in the first place.
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Apples seem to like it here anyway…
Sorry you have only got shitty cosmic crisp so far. Some are fantastic.