Yellow Transparent
Most of July
A popular favorite of local applesauce makers who prefer a tarter, full-of-flavor apple with smooth, light texture and wonderfully attractive light color
Best Alternate: Earligold or Summer Rambo
Earligold
Late July - Late August
A transparent-type variety makes a light-textured, light-colored and full flavored applesauce. This cultivar originated in Washington state a number of years back.
Best Alternate: Yellow Transparent or Summer Rambo
Summer Rambo
Late July - mid-August
A grass green-colored Lancaster County favorite for applesauce and apple pies. First grown in France in the mid-1500's.
Best Alternate: Earligold or Smokehouse
Ginger Gold
Early August - Early September
Our top-selling applesauce variety, with crunch and flavor are great for fresh eating too. Almost as sweet and tasty as Golden Delicious, but ripens six weeks earlier. Discovered by a fruit grower in Virginia after a tragic storm in 1969.
Best Alternate: Earligold or Golden Supreme
Sansa
Early August - Early September
The first "real" eating apple of the season. An "offspring" of Gala and also related to Jonathan.Originated in Japan and has tremendous flavor, juice, and crunch.
Best Alternate: Zestar or Gala
Zestar!® (Minnewashta cultivar)
Late August - Early October
An early season apple with crisp, juicy texture and a zesty flavor with a hint of brown sugar. Outstanding texture, flavor, and storage life. Developed at the University of Minnesota, who also introduced the Honeycrisp.
Best Alternate: Sansa or Honeycrisp
Golden Supreme
Late August - mid-September
A golden colored apple with impressive flavor and texture, much like its parent Golden Delicious. Perfect for out-of-hand snacking and excellent for drying, baking, and making cider.
Best Alternate: Ginger Gold or Golden Delicious
Gala
Late August - Most of Winter
The most popular eating apple in the U.S. with a glowing red-orange appearance, sweet & wonderful taste, and an excellent crunch. Originated in New Zealand and includes both Red Delicious and Golden Delicious in its ancestry.
Best Alternate: Zestar or Sansa
Honeycrisp
Late August - Early October
An "explosively crisp" apple, with light, crunchy texture and sweet flavor. Introduced in 1991 at the University of Minnesota. Honeycrisp is also a fine baking apple.
Best Alternate: Zestar or Crimson Crisp
Smokehouse
Most of September
Originated as a chance seedling behind the smokehouse of a Bird-in-Hand farm in the 1800's making it a Lancaster County specialty. Green skin color and tart flavor compares to Granny Smith. Ideal for all cooking, baking, sauce, and salad purposes.
Best Alternate: Summer Rambo or Grimes Golden
McIntosh
Mid-September - Thanksgiving
A mildly tart, somewhat mellow and aromatic apple that's great for snacking, drying, most cooking purposes, and applesauce. McIntosh has been the premier apple grown in New York and the New England states.
Best Alternate: Cortland or Empire
Jonathan
Mid-September - Early-December
A tart and spicy all-around apple. This variety has great "stay firm when baked" flesh for pies and dumplings.
Best Alternate: Jonagold or Idared
Red Delicious
Mid-September - Spring
The best known apple, primarily used for fresh eating. Discovered on a farm in Iowa in the 1870's. Originally called "Hawkeye" before Stark Brothers Nursery bought the rights to the apple and renamed it.
Best Alternate: Golden Delicious or Cameo
Grimes Golden
Mid-September - Early November
Excellent for pies and cooked-apple dishes. Also great-tasting fresh eating apple with a mellow texture. Discovered by Thomas Grimes in West Virginia in 1804 and believed to be a parent of Golden Delicious.
Best Alternate: Ginger Gold or Golden Delicious
Cortland
Mid-September - Early December
An excellent all-around apple with mellow texture, "stay-white-longer" flesh, and makes red-colored applesauce. Originated in New York State as a cross between McIntosh and Ben Davis.
Best Alternate: McIntosh or Empire
CrimsonCrisp
Mid-September - Most of Winter
A crunchy, sweet-tart fresh-eating and salad apple that rivals Honeycrisp.
Best Alternate: Zestar or Honeycrisp
Empire
Late September - Most of Winter
Combines the best traits of both its parents, Red Delicious and McIntosh. Great for snacks, desserts, and salads, as well as the main ingredient in apple pie.
Best Alternate: Cortland or Red Delicious
Golden Delicious
Mid-September - Spring
Kauffman's best selling apple. In 2014, our orchard crew harvested 2423 bushels of Golden Delicious in three weeks' time. Great for all purposes.
Best Alternate: Golden Supreme or Grimes Golden
Jonagold
Late September - Most of Winter
A large, beautiful apple with mellow texture and great taste. A cross between Jonathan and Golden Delicious. Great when blended with a sweet variety for a great no-sugar-added applesauce.
Best Alternate: Jonathan or Crispin
Idared
Late-September - Mid-December
Developed at the University of Idaho's Agricultural Experiment Station and well-suited for baking, cooking, and drying uses. Used at Kauffman's for making tart apple schnitz.
Best Alternate: Jonathan or Rome
Crispin
Early October - Spring
A sweet, juicy, firm textured, crispy, white-fleshed variety developed in Japan, where they call it Mutsu. Great for salads and cooked apple dishes, too.
Best Alternate: Golden Delicious or Cameo
Stayman
Mid-October - March
Discovered around the close of the Civil War by J. Stayman, this variety is one of the most popular cultivars grown at Kauffman's. Rich, snappy, and distinctive taste and texture.
Best Alternate: Rome or Goldrush
Rome Beauty
Early October - Spring
A better keeping variety that is firm and attractively colored. It has a mild flavor and is good for all baking and cooking purposes. RUsed at Kauffman's for peeling and coring apples for bakeries and restaurants and in Arianna’s Apple Dumplings.
Best Alternate: Stayman or Idared
Fuji
Mid-September - Spring
Unusually sweet and extra crunchy. Developed in Japan and claims Red Delicious as a parent. A classic apple for fresh eating and salads and is an outstanding keeper.
Best Alternate: Cameo or Braeburn
Cameo
Early October - Most of Winter
Pleasingly sweet flavor, big crunch, and good keeping qualities. The thin skin enhances its fresh-eating pleasure. Believed to be related to both Red Delicious and Golden Delicious, Cameo was discovered in Washington State in 1987.
Best Alternate: Fuji or Braeburn
Granny Smith
Late October - January
The famous green baking apple discovered by Margaret Smith in Australia before 1900. Hard, juicy, and tart. Perhaps the most widely known cooking apple.
Best Alternate: Stayman or Pink Lady
Goldrush
Thanksgiving - Spring
Great for fresh-eating and in baked apple dishes. A disease-resistant apple developed through the combined efforts of Purdue University, Rutgers University and the University of Illinois. Firm texture and spicy taste.
Best Alternate: Granny Smith or Pink Lady
Pink Lady
Early November - Spring
Developed in Australia and includes Golden Delicious in its ancestry. Sweet-tart, outstanding flavor and very crisp texture. The pink skin and white flesh add to the attractiveness of this variety.
Best Alternate: Braeburn or Goldrush