Time to find the farm w Opal trees and do a midnight raid. Belly crawl w a grafting knife in my mouth. lol
Guerrilla growing apples.
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Purchased my 1st Opal apples at my local supermarket. I tried 2 of them and the flavor was underwhelm. It have a soft crunch and almost too soft. Mild sweetness.
The Cosmic Crisp that cost 5 dollars for 5lb bag is superior. The Opal that is freshly pick is likely better. However, I donāt have such apple tree to pick from.
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I have 10lbs in storage this year.
I had 5lbs in storage last year and that wasnt enough.
WSU says storage is 4 monthsā¦ i will start eating mine in Feb/March.
Taste-
YMMV but i think they are much better after storageā¦ or perhaps bought later in stores after they have been stored elsewhere.
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You have the scion ? Or just bought bulk apples
Opal is off patent nowā¦
I really liked the ones Iāve tried and I hope we can find some Scion wood so we can try growing them!
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yes, why i was so curious since kris has 10 lbs in storage. technically free to sell
Found on Etsyā¦ but is it real?
And $74???
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right now my understanding is its possible ??? to import from europe but it needs some work to get.
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The listing and seller do not inspire confidence.
Would love scion of this variety. I was blown away by the first Opal apple I tried several years ago. Iāve had hit or miss bags since.
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The farm is in eastern Washington near Yakima. I sent them an email today inquiring about Opal whips to buy after itās off patent status. Could it be that easy? Probably not.
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it is off patent status right now as far as i know.
But i doubt they can sell. its more likely someone in europe can sell because theyre not contracted in the same way and then you would have to find people who can import legally. which will involve some sort of virus certification i am sure.
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I doubt anyone has scion. If i had to guess Stark will probably acquire it and trademark it. Starking Opal Delicious?
Where i am located which i am sure is low on the totem for the best quality fruitsā¦ certain Kroger seem to get the nicest quality Opals whereas my walmart seems to get the lowest quality.
The price is fair to me at $25 for 10lbs
I recommend at least trying some fresh from the store then some that are stored for a month or two (or three) to weigh which one tastes best to youā¦ as taste is subjective.
Exciting! Please report back! It is pruning season after all 
Interesting about the storage. I had a really good bag of them from Walmart in early Nov. Then some less good, I thought maybe they didnāt store well!
I havenāt found any in my local stores in the last week or two but I will look now so I can try storing some.
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Iāve considered Opal to be one of the most dependably good apples from the grocery store, but this year I havenāt had any good ones yet. The ones Iāve gotten have been soft and bland. I suspect having been stored at room temperature too long.
Hopefully it is just a bad sample and Iāll get some good ones.