First apples from my 2019 grafts. Picked early October and ate one mid-Oct. It was OK, firm crunch, mild sweet, moderate juice. Seeds were brown but I felt it needed some time in storage. The end of November we ate a 2nd one - much better. Very nice sweet with pleasing interesting flavor. Tender-firm with moderate juice. I’m saving the last one for end of December. I think it is an attractive apple, and look forward to more. I see why others have given it good words.
The main graft is on a wild seedling in my fenced orchard. It did have some blooms but I took them all off because the tree was decidedly short on leaves with a lot of blind wood. Appears to be a tip bearer. The tree is plenty vigorous and I hope it gets up more leaves next year. I had a piece of scion left so stuck it on a wild sapling outside the fence (a bad habit when one has a lot of wild crabs/apples) and didn’t pay much attention to it until my husband almost cut it down when doing some clearing (he happened to see it had a tag and it was spared). He pointed out to me that it had apples! A healthy full leafed young tree with 3 healthy apples, no insect damage, no bird pecks. Makes me wonder about my “management” practices! Sue
It’s been a winner here in Maine as well, healthy vigorous spreading easily trained tree, nice all purpose apples. Mid season here, generally they are gone well before now. Like many of the best heirlooms it does seem pest and disease resistant. Yes it’s a partial tip bearer.
Celebrated the end of the year by eating our last Smokehouse - very good! Getting toward the end of decent texture but wonderful pleasingly interesting flavor, with quite a sweet aftertaste, tender, and juicy enough. With my relatively warm storage (root cellar is still at low 40’s with this unusually mild weather) it looks like December is its best for eating here. Probably be fine for sauce into January. I’m looking forward to finding that out when I have more apples.
Happy Appley New Year’s Wishes to Everyone! Sue
Smokehouse has a weird, distorted growth habit, making it difficult to train. I’ve not tasted any in my climate that make me consider it a real keeper among heirlooms. I suspect it is a better apple in the south. Same deal with Grimes Golden (not growth but the apple itself).
A couple days ago I visited an organic orchard associated with the U. of Idaho. Among other personal firsts, I ate some Smokehouse. The malt I had asked about was part of the flavors, very juicy, lotsa crunch & the fellow I talked with said it is one of his best trees.
I hope to get some scions of it this winter & graft it onto a branch of my trees & graft more for gifts & sale.
What one nursery sells as a variety seems not to always be the same as other nurseries. With the heirlooms this may be particularly perilous, not just because there can be several strains over time but also because nurseries can unwittingly be selling the wrong variety altogether and not suffer any consequences or even know that their mother tree is misidentified.
Adams County Nursery has been the source of Smokehouse for me and I’ve gotten misnamed varieties from them before when I ordered Valor plums and years ago when I ordered Green Gage plums from them. The Valor was unintentional but the GG was deliberate. It was a J. plum whose fruit looked like Green Gage and they knew they weren’t selling it to commercial growers.
Their Artic Glo nectarines look nothing like the nects from the Artic Glo Drew bought from Grandpa’s orchard, which have distinctly red flesh and look delicious. Mine are all white and so-so.
I have had some odd moments regarding mislabeled apples over the years, too. Two in the yard today are of questionable ID. No word yet from the DNA lab I sent leaf samples to last May.
I hope to get a Smokehouse scion from this tree in Idaho as well as scions from Derek Mills. Time will tell if they coincide.
Cummins mentioned the malt note & it was unmistakable in this sample. Shape & juiciness met with Tom Burford’s description. Seems the tree at U of I orchard is correct.
I keep finding mention of brushy growth & the need for heavy pruning. Is that anyone’s experience with Smokehouse? (Seems a minor concern when I find the apple so persuasive.)
