Red Prince is an apple variety that was discovered in Weert, a town in the Netherlands as a hybrid between Jonathan and Golden Delicious. The apples are deep red in color and quite large. The texture of the flesh is crisp and juicy, while the flavors are sweet, especially after aging in cellars for a few months after the harvest, when it develops both tangy and sweet flavors.
Available in fall through late winter, Red Prince apples are very versatile – they can be eaten fresh, cooked, baked, or transformed into juices. The apples are also often added to soups, sauced, and salads.
Cameo is an apple variety originating from Dryden, Washington, when it was discovered in 1987 by the Caudle family. It is believed that these apples are a cross between Red Delicious and Golden Delicious, but the parentage is still uncertain.
The apples are covered in red strips and the skin is thin and delicate. The flesh is creamy and dense, with a juicy and crisp texture. The flavor is sweet and tart with notes of citrus and honey. Available from late fall through early spring, Cameo apples are typically used in sweet and savory dishes such as cobblers, quiches, sandwiches, and salads.
Enterprise is a North American apple variety that's been developed in 1982 by Purdue University, and it was released and named in 1992. The apples are medium to large in size. The skin is smooth, tough, thick, and glossy red in color with a yellow or green background.
The flesh is pale yellow in color, while the texture is crisp, juicy, and firm. These apples are most commonly used for candied apples, which are especially popular on Halloween in the United States. They are also often eaten fresh as a snack.
Juliet is an apple variety originating from France. The apples are medium in size, with a smooth and shiny red skin and a yellow-green or green background. The texture of the flesh is juicy and crisp, while the flavors have a nice balance of sweetness and acidity.
It's recommended to eat the apples fresh, cook them, bake them, or transform them into juice. Juliet apples were released to the market in the 1990s, and they are available in the fall and winter months. Due to their long shelf life, these apples are shipped from France to North America, the Middle East and Asia throughout the year.
Red Delicious is one of the world's most common apple varieties, dating back to 1880, when it was discovered by Jesse Hiatt in Iowa. The apples were first known as Hawkeye, then Stark Delicious, and it wasn't until the emergence of Golden Delicious that these apples were renamed Red Delicious.
They have a bright red color, medium size, and a tall conical shape. The flavor is sweet, but very mild, slightly reminiscent of over-ripe melons. The texture of the flesh is juicy and slightly crisp, sometimes cardboardy, while the skin is usually very tough.
Pomme du Limousin is a fresh apple from the Golden delicious variety with a well-balanced flavor of acidity and sweetness, grown in the Limousin region in France. The apples are pale green to yellow in color and have a firm, crispy, juicy, non-floury, white colored flesh.
All of the apples are harvested by hand and have exceptionally long shelf life. They are also praised for the high-standard transportation methods - the apples are transported in water in order to avoid any bruising of the fruit. These golden apples are best with foie gras, blood sausage and game meat or in desserts such as pies and crépes.
Cortland is an American apple variety dating back to 1898, when it was raised at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station and named after Cortland County. These apples are bright red with dark red streaks, and often a green blush.
The flesh is white and juicy, while the flavors are tart and sweet. Cortlands are a cross between the Ben Davis and the McIntosh. It's recommended to use the apples in cooking, for making apple sauce, apple butter, and juices, but they're also eaten fresh when available (in fall through spring).
Empire is an apple variety that was cultivated as a hybrid between McIntosh and Red Delicious in Geneva, New York in 1945. The apples are bright red in color with faint white striations and a light green blush. The flesh is creamy white in color, while the texture is crisp and juicy.
The flavor is sweet and tart. Available from fall until mid-winter, Empire apples are usually baked, sautéed, or roasted. When fresh, they're used in salads or coleslaw. It's recommended to pair them with sharp cheeses, pears, pumpkin, and warming spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg.
Cox's Orange Pippin is a traditional apple variety that was first grown in 1830 at Colnbrook by horticulturist Richard Cox, hence the name. The highly perfumed skin is red with orange overtones. The texture is crisp, juicy, and meaty, while the flavors are subtly sweet and slightly astringent with notes of caramelized baked apples.
These apples taste the best from November to April, although they keep well through late spring. Cox's Orange Pippin is considered one of the finest dessert apples in the world, but it's notoriously hard to grow as it needs a cool maritime climate and it's prone to diseases.
Jonathan is an apple variety that's believed to have originated in Woodstock, New York in 1826. This apple is a parent to many other varieties such as Jonagold, Jonafree, and Jonamac. The apples are medium-sized with a thin red skin and yellow or green blushes.
The texture of the flesh is juicy and crisp, while the flavors are mildly sweet, tart, and tangy with hints of spice. Available in the fall, Jonathan apples are usually cooked or eaten fresh. It's recommended to add slices to tarts, purees, soups, or use it in pies and sauces.
TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “25 Worst Rated Apple Varieties in the World” list until February 16, 2025, 1,438 ratings were recorded, of which 1,188 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.