Heirloom Apple Varieties
Hunt Russet
Dating back to Colonial America’s Concord, Massachusetts, 1750’s, the Hunt Russet is a superb tart sweet Russet with classic, nutty pear flavors that mature with storage. John Moore, in his "Native Seedling Fruits" read to the February 1875 meeting of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society and reproduced in many horticultural journals, tells this tale:
‘The Hunt Russet apple was cultivated about Concord, Mass., more than any other apple, until the introduction of the Baldwin. It is now more sought for than that apple, for consumers have found out its good character, it being much better in quality as a cooking apple, better for the table, and better for keeping than the Baldwin.
From all the traditions, which seem to be well founded, this apple originated on the old Hunt farm, in Concord, Mass. This farm is located one mile north of the village, on the south side of "Punkatasset" hill, overlooking the old North Bridge of Revolutionary fame....’
Creamy flesh, fine-grained, juicy and tender, Hunts is excellent for fresh eating as well as in pies and cider. Harvest late September.
