What are the characteristics of Cosmic Crisp apples, and where can you buy saplings of this new American variety?
Cosmic Crisp is an American apple, with the variety name WA 38. Breeding began in 1997 at the Washington State University Tree Fruit Research and Extension Center in Wenatchee, Washington. Cosmic Crisp combines the best features of the existing Honeycrisp and Enterprise apples. In terms of variety propagation, the focus is not on appearance, but on durability and shelf life.
Cosmic Crisp apples are large and juicy, with a very firm and crisp texture. Their unique flavor profile provides plenty of sweetness and acidity, making them an excellent eating apple. In addition to being delicious, they brown slowly when cut and keep their texture and flavor in storage for more than a year. The most attractive characteristics of the Cosmic Crisp are its excellent eating quality, abundant fruit size, attractive appearance and productivity.
The variety was first planted for commercial use in spring 2017, and Washington State orchards pre-ordered 12 million trees. The variety was initially available only to Washington growers, and will remain restricted to them for at least a decade. Interest was so high that saplings initially had to be distributed to apple farmers in a lottery held in 2014. Litigation arose between WSU and a Seattle spin-off, with the university claiming that more than 100,000 saplings had been distributed.
The apple ripens at the same time as Red Delicious, and is expected to replace most of the Red Delicious inventory. After 20 years of development, consumers will get Cosmic Crisp in 2019.
The New York Times called the apple “very dark, intensely flavored and explosively juicy”, making it “the most promising and important apple of the future”. Food Republic called it “firmer than Honeycrisp, but not too firm. It is high in both sugar and acidity, making it far superior to the Red Delicious, Gala and Fuji varieties.” Northwest Public Radio noted that Washington State, which produces 70% of US apples, believes the apple will “conquer” the market when it reaches supermarket shelves in 2019.
