The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple • Hacker News Board

Re: The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple

#51

Post by binomialxenon » Fri, Nov 09, 2018, 11:44 PM UTC

harimau777 wrote: post #36

2trill2spill wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What? Did you read the article? Or have you been to the midwest? Honeycrisp are from the midwest and when I'm in the grocery store we have a dozen or so varieties of apples, Like Zestar, Pink lady, Honeycrisp, Sweet tango, Opal and the usual suspects as well.

Hmm, I'm meaning more the rust belt/great lakes part of the midwest. Maybe its changed since I moved away?

I live in that part of the midwest and we have about a dozen varieties of apples at the grocery store, prices are pretty decent too.

Re: The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple

#52

Post by sam » Fri, Nov 09, 2018, 11:45 PM UTC

CoolGuySteve wrote: post #26

If you're in the Northeast, you should try a Macoun apple. More tart than Honey crisp, it's a cross between a Macintosh and some more crisp apple. I never had one until I moved to New York but now it's my favourite variety.

I just have to second this. Macouns are sublime. They peak in late fall in the northeast. Their fragrance in the cold New England fall air is the definition of November to me.

Re: The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple

#53

Post by rpeden » Fri, Nov 09, 2018, 11:46 PM UTC

irrational wrote: post #3

1. Pink Lady > Honeycrisp (though Honeycrisp is very good). 2. "The Honeycrisp variety is now so popular, consumers will spend three times the cost of other apples to experience it." Wow, I'm thankful I live in Oregon. Our local grocery store has about 10 varieties of apples on sale and Honeycrisp are usually no more expensive than other varieties.

Have you tried Envy apples? I like them a bit more than Pink Lady or Honeycrisp, though they're all pretty tasty.

They can be a bit hard to find. Here in Toronto I've only seen Envys from New Zealand. They grow a decent number of them in Washington, though, and since you're right next door in Oregon maybe your grocery store will have some of those.

Re: The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple

#54

Post by PhasmaFelis » Fri, Nov 09, 2018, 11:47 PM UTC

2trill2spill wrote: post #2

So this article is about east coast orchards complaining that a plant that was bred to grow in Minnesota doesn't grow as well on the east coast? Well duh. As Karina Gallardo, an agricultural economist at Washington State University was quoted in the article saying “There’s a higher investment and production cost in places that are not Minnesota,” And yet it seems these orchard still make money off Honeycrisp so I'm n…

It's an interesting look at the vagaries of the apple-growing business. Not sure why you're reading it as a sob story.

Re: The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple

#55

Post by rabboRubble » Fri, Nov 09, 2018, 11:53 PM UTC

rpeden wrote: post #53

irrational wrote: post #3

1. Pink Lady > Honeycrisp (though Honeycrisp is very good). 2. "The Honeycrisp variety is now so popular, consumers will spend three times the cost of other apples to experience it." Wow, I'm thankful I live in Oregon. Our local grocery store has about 10 varieties of apples on sale and Honeycrisp are usually no more expensive than other varieties.

Have you tried Envy apples? I like them a bit more than Pink Lady or Honeycrisp, though they're all pretty tasty. They can be a bit hard to find. Here in Toronto I've only seen Envys from New Zealand. They grow a decent number of them in Washington, though, and since you're right next door in Oregon maybe your grocery store will have some of those.

Envies are wonderful.

I only started seeing them in the last 2 years. My current reliably available favorite is Fuji apples.

Re: The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple

#56

Post by Tiktaalik » Fri, Nov 09, 2018, 11:54 PM UTC

irrational wrote: post #3

1. Pink Lady > Honeycrisp (though Honeycrisp is very good). 2. "The Honeycrisp variety is now so popular, consumers will spend three times the cost of other apples to experience it." Wow, I'm thankful I live in Oregon. Our local grocery store has about 10 varieties of apples on sale and Honeycrisp are usually no more expensive than other varieties.

Yep. Lucky to be in the pacific northwest apple country (British Columbia for me), where a super market will have tons of apple varieties such as Jazz, Pink Lady, and locally developed Ambrosia (so sweet and honeylike it's almost like a dessert apple).

Re: The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple

#57

Post by wizzard » Fri, Nov 09, 2018, 11:56 PM UTC

irrational wrote: post #3

1. Pink Lady > Honeycrisp (though Honeycrisp is very good). 2. "The Honeycrisp variety is now so popular, consumers will spend three times the cost of other apples to experience it." Wow, I'm thankful I live in Oregon. Our local grocery store has about 10 varieties of apples on sale and Honeycrisp are usually no more expensive than other varieties.

I’ve tried Honeycrisps a few times and I just don’t understand why they’re so loved. They have a super crisp skin with a mealy interior, and I swear the flavor has a hint of tomato. It’s so off-putting.

Re: The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple

#58

Post by throw7 » Sat, Nov 10, 2018, 12:04 AM UTC

wizzard wrote: post #57

irrational wrote: post #3

1. Pink Lady > Honeycrisp (though Honeycrisp is very good). 2. "The Honeycrisp variety is now so popular, consumers will spend three times the cost of other apples to experience it." Wow, I'm thankful I live in Oregon. Our local grocery store has about 10 varieties of apples on sale and Honeycrisp are usually no more expensive than other varieties.

I’ve tried Honeycrisps a few times and I just don’t understand why they’re so loved. They have a super crisp skin with a mealy interior, and I swear the flavor has a hint of tomato. It’s so off-putting.

You and me brother. Honeycrisp is way overrated. Personally, I enjoy the empire apple for raw eating.

Re: The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple

#59

Post by timdiggerm » Sat, Nov 10, 2018, 12:29 AM UTC

irrational wrote: post #3

1. Pink Lady > Honeycrisp (though Honeycrisp is very good). 2. "The Honeycrisp variety is now so popular, consumers will spend three times the cost of other apples to experience it." Wow, I'm thankful I live in Oregon. Our local grocery store has about 10 varieties of apples on sale and Honeycrisp are usually no more expensive than other varieties.

Have you tried Goldrush?

Re: The Curse of the Honeycrisp Apple

#60

Post by WillPostForFood » Sat, Nov 10, 2018, 12:30 AM UTC

stcredzero wrote: post #25

I have childhood memories of going into the woods around the park to pick blackberries. The flavors to be found in good blackberries are pretty sublime. The other day, I bought a container of blackberries. Somehow, they had been reduced to bloated, flavorless bags of purple sugar water. (I suspect this is why they were a sale item.) Altering plants for better taste does have a place.

November is months past blackberry season, so you are probably buying something picked far away, before it was properly ripened, then chilled and placed in a shipping container for who knows how long.