I went to the local orchard store today and noticed that they had “Suncrisp” handwritten on the blackboard outside. I couldn’t find any in the store and asked, and was told they don’t have any in the store and that it must be up in PYO. I grabbed a bag full of Golden Delicious, making sure to pick up those with lots of russet, lots of yellow, and the few with reddish blush. I went up to PYO after and was told they picked the trees clean a few days ago. The store must have just run out.
I had three of them so far. One of them was NOT a golden delicious based on the flavor. Same aroma and taste, but with an acid kick that makes it a remarkable apple. I suspect this was a Suncrisp that got mixed in with the GDs. I should start taking pictures of things like this.
I also asked the employee about GoldRush, since I had talked to the owner about it a few months ago. She hadn’t heard of it and went into the back and talked to the owner’s daughter who told her it’s a “West Coast apple”. I tried explaining that it was a Purdue/Rutgers/Illinois variety that’s very popular with eastern fruit enthusiasts and grown at PYO orchards up and down the East Coast, but she just kept repeating “nope, it’s a West Coast apple”. Oh well. I sent an email to the orchard about that.