Red Gravenstein

There are numerous strains of the famous pie apple, Gravenstein.  This deep purple-red strain can be found in old orchards in southern Maine.

Mary Jones used Red Gravensteins from Sweetser’s Orchard in Cumberland to win the Maine State Pie Championship a few years ago. She recalled the taste as “sweet but very hard to describe…real nice…full-bodied…wonderful flavor.” The fruit ripens earlier than most cooking apples, over the course of several weeks.  It’s a minor miracle that Mary somehow saved this late summer apple until January for the State Championship.

We find the flavor of this apple to calling out to be made into a pie. Limey with a slight finish of honeysuckle, you can almost imagine forking into a warm slice when you take a bite. The flesh dissolves to nothing in your mouth - almost like eating a cloud.