I have tried a few Japanese gourmet apple varieties, but decided to post about the Shinano Gold Apple from Aomori, as it is currently my favourite, and a very premium apple variety indeed.
I understand that this is a cross of the Golden Delicious variety and another one called Senshu, which in turn is a cross of Fuji and Toko varieties. (Toko is in turn a derivative of Ourin or Ohrin variety, which is another Aomori apple I tried, but which I didn't like as much.)
[Update: While this particular batch of apples were grown in Aomori, an anonymous commenter pointed out that the breed was first developed in Nagano Prefecture, and that "Shinano" is an old name for the Nagano area. And I later found that it was first bred in 1993 at the Nagano Fruit Tree Experiment Station. So thank you to the commenter for this. I suppose Aomori farms actively scout for new promising varieties to cultivate, and have since started cultivating this species taken from that Station. Besides that, this variety is currently grown in a number of prefectures outside Nagano or Aomori, and even outside Japan, such as Iwate, Akita, Yamagata and even South Tyrol, Italy, as it was apparently released to European markets in 2015.]
I think all the interbreeding paid off indeed, because Shinano Gold is everything I could ask from an apple. Visually, it has a very alluring and rich golden colour, with some cute freckles as well. Its adoption in farms in various prefectures and Europe is also testament to this and I hope it becomes more widespread and easily found in the supermarket.
Taste-wise, it was a perfect balance of sweetness, tartness and floral apple fragrance. Even before cutting it, I could already smell the nice fragrance emanating from the skin. The fragrance was a mix dominated by pear, like Nashi Pear, and some secondary tropical notes like pineapple. I'm not sure how to describe it, but it was very full and rounded.
The texture was also perfect. The skin wasn't too thick and was light to the bite. The flesh was completely crisp, with no hint of powdery feeling, which some other apple varieties might be prone to. It is comparable to the crispest of Fuji apples, but usually those tend to be too watery and have too little fragrance. This Shinano Gold, however, was super crisp yet super rich in flavour.
I think the closest apple variety that I would compare it to is the Envy Apple, which was previously my favourite. But the Shinano Gold is sweeter, had a stronger and more rounded fragrance, was slightly less sour, was crisper in texture, and had a skin that was easier to the bite. So it is hands-down better than Envy in my opinion.
If you like Envy Apple, I would highly recommend trying this. Others I've tried but didn't like as much were many varieties of Fuji, Pink Lady, Ourin and so on, and I still prefer this Shinano Gold. I'm also not even considering older apple varieties such as the Washington Apple (which has a skin that's thick like a milk carton and a super powdery texture).
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Shinano gold were developed in Nagano prefecture. Shinano is the old name for the Nagano area.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for this information on where the breed originated from, and I have included it as extra trivia for clarification. That said, I can confirm that this particular apple was grown in Aomori, because that is what the supermarket indicated. I did not take a picture of that, however. But online, you can find information that this variety is currently grown in a number of prefectures outside Nagano and even outside Japan, such as Iwate, Akita, Yamagata and even South Tyrol, Italy, as it was apparently released to European markets in 2015. (https://specialtyproduce.com/produce/Shinano_Gold_Apples_15874.php)
DeleteVery grateful for the time taken to engage and enlighten me!