This New Apple Has Never Been Tasted by Anyone, Until Now...

My guest taster Gretchen is a talented artist and ceramicist! Find her @
website gretchengavlahn.com
instagram @gretchen_gavlahn
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Every new apple variety has to be tasted by someone for the first time. That's what we are doing today, reviewing a brand new seedling fruiting for the first time in 2020. A cross between Wiilliams' Pride and Vixen.
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[@SkillCult]

I forgot to plug Gretchen's social media in the video. Gretchen is a talented natural artist and ceramicist. Her awesome shirt was painted by hand with these cool animal fur brushes that she makes herself. Find her on instagram as @Gretchen_gavlahn

[@davidthegood]

I missed this one the first time around. Really fun.

[@mattoakley2246]

Just from what you've describing sounds like they would make really good hard cider. My grandfather did this with apples n used to say you couldn't tell what it would really be until the tree was older (10 to 15 years). Awesome to see someone doing this! Thanks for sharing.

[@SkillCult]

I think you would need to blend down the acid a bit though. Probably a good sharp for blending in. Not really cider season though, so there might not be a lot to blend with it. I should have tested the Brix, but didn't think of it.

[@thomasholte1828]

Thank you for all of the great apple breeding information, and all of your hard work.

[@jim8577]

Love these types of videos! Always nice to find one that has possibilities, I like the higher acid apples can't wait for more updates in the years to come! Loved her bubbly personality looked like yinz had some fun during this video.

[@SkillCult]

Gretchen is super fun. She definitely brings out the fun person in me.

[@JRHimself1]

Fun video, nice upbeat attitude I love where you are going with your videos

[@SkillCult]

I like this video. It's good to have someone fun around, it makes me more fun.

[@jerrywhidby.]

"Just like people right. They have different color, flavors....." 😳😰😱

[@SkillCult]

Okay, so I eat people, but I'm not breeding them for flavor, I have ethics!

[@jettyeddie_m9130]

Girls have different flavors 😉😉😉😛

[@jesusv.5828]

She was like ...when is he going to stop talking 🤣 ♥️ it

[@SkillCult]

ha ha, probably.

[@SkillCult]

A lot of people probably think that...

[@MountaincraftOutdoors]

You have given me a whole different perspective to the apple. Thank you.

[@WelcometoChickenlandia]

I feel like I'm watching Jurassic Park! I hope science doesn't go too far with this apple lol.

[@SkillCult]

Hi chicken friend :) Glad to see your subs steadily climbing. Ain't no shame in that chicken game!

[@mikedrop4421]

Ahhh, he fed her the apple first! Finally us men get revenge!

[@jerrywhidby.]

Since the beginning women have tasted the apple first.

[@mikedrop4421]

@@jerrywhidby. I meant that he fed the apple to her as to see what happened. Yes in the garden of eden myth the "deciever" convinced Eve to eat fruit from the tree of the "knowledge of good and evil" which she then brought said fruit back to Adam and convinced him to partake. It was a joke, kinda like people taking the story seriously.

[@jerrywhidby.]

@@mikedrop4421 okay then. My comment was a joke.

[@mikedrop4421]

@@jerrywhidby. see that's the problem with comments, it seemed like you missed the joke but in reality I did. Oh well. All good.

[@ranieltrasvina131]

I feel like I wouldn’t be able to watch videos about apples if these people didn’t exist, just great chemistry

[@InPrimer]

Great name. Thanks for sharing that. Can’t taste it from here but it sure is a nice looking apple.

[@SkillCult]

It really is and given that I only watered and fed this 5 foot tree once about a week before this apple came off the tree in a drought year, it may get quite a bit bigger. I also never saw a single speck of scab on any of the four apples and those trial rows are full of it because they are crowde and I never clean up the leaves.

[@ashnur]

I just want to say I am really happy to have watched this video.

[@SkillCult]

I like that comment :)

[@GabeOtto]

I hope that you will eventually release this one. Sounds very interesting to me.

[@SkillCult]

Very likely. I might give it another year or two to see what it does.

[@suburbanhomesteaderwy-az]

Awesome Steve.

[@velodaman]

Thanks for sharing. You got the skills ta pay da bills!

[@SkillCult]

I guess not, I spent that last couple weeks listing stuff on ebay and collecting bulbs and seeds to pay off debts lol.

[@elkhound25]

thanks for all you do !

[@mdl17576]

I'll be looking forward to updates on this one. My personal taste is for a higher than average acid to sugar ratio, so I'd probably enjoy this apple. I've actually thought it would be interesting to breed an apple that would produce juice with a similar acidity to lemon juice, but with a rich apple flavor. Something that would be good mixed in seltzer, or in a mixed drink for example with gin in an apple ricky.

[@SkillCult]

I bet there is an apple like that out there somewhere. I know there is one that actually tastes like lemon, but apparently it's not actually very acidic, it's just got the aromatics.

[@milkcoffee-h8g]

Great work, maybe the apple taste is sour, but I can tell it's very crunchy , 05:40 the apple turns brownish very quickly meaning rich of antioxidant

[@LVSpeedweLL]

🌹😁👊🏼🍎Twang! Thanks for sharing the taste test. Is it possible some of the flavor is affected by weather? And this tree has siblings so who know what other flavors are possible. I’m always so happy hiking in late autumn here in western NC and finding an old orchard with late Apples. 🙏🏼🌹

[@SkillCult]

For sure could be affected by weather and it's been very hot and it's a drought year and I didn't water or fertilize til a week or so before this came off the tree. Between all that and the fact that apples will often develop and become better or more expressive of their true potential as the tree matures, it might be fair bit better. But it will still probably have the same basic character. We should know more in a few years. Not a game for the impatient lol.

[@LVSpeedweLL]

@@SkillCult 🌱🍎Gardening, the slowest of the “performing arts” 😁

[@mihacurk]

Cool vid! With Gretchen moving north, is there still a chance for you to finish the basketry series?

[@SkillCult]

Hopefully. If so, it will probably be more toward winter.

[@jeffreydustin5303]

Recommend cutting a uniform cube when you test the apples....1 inch cubed, because the flavinoids in the sample might scale based on the sample size.

[@full_metal2452]

That's not how people eat apples though.

[@SkillCult]

I'll try it.

[@mytech6779]

I have a volunteer seedling in my field, It's a yellow crab, mid august, about the size of walnuts(without husk) the long pedicels and clusters of fruits typical of crabs , a bit sharp but not in excess and the texture might make it good for pressing [not hard but a bit fiberous]. Pretty sure the parents are yellow transparent and a flowering crab (unknown cultivar), I don't have any fruiting crabs in the neigborhood. It had a very good fruit set this year, though I removed about 7/8 of the fruits very early because I didn't know if it was a crab and wanted to see the size potential. Might try to cross it with either kingston black, goldrush, or wolf river (if I'm still living here and get some time next spring.)

[@SkillCult]

I'd go with goldrush out of that list. I hear it actually makes good cider, cool keeping ability, good flavor and disease resistance, or at least scab proof anyway.

[@jasonhw00]

Tart and soar apples can make good hard cider

[@SkillCult]

These might be a little sharp to go alone, but at least for blending for sure. Not a lot of apples ripe in August though to blend with though.

[@johncollins1602]

Heck yea! At least it's decent. And you made it. Its hard to get a tart apple that's enjoyable , so I'd say yhays a def win. Those are best pie apples anyway. Good job man😊✌

[@AmanitaDreamer]

But now you need to see how it bakes and holds up to heat. Core one and bake it with some butter and sugar and spices? I’m making smoking blends these days 😊

[@SkillCult]

Yeah, that's a good test. But what do I want it to do anyway? Some people want them to hold together and some want them to froth out. I guess I'm pretty ambivalent. Hopefully we'll find out next year!

[@butchwillard9281]

Great video.

[@emlillthings7914]

The special effects in the early plug compensated for the limited taste on my screen (round 3 was less sticky)

[@emeltea33]

OH!! You were licking the screen; I thought you were trying to kiss the presenter.

[@ModernGentleman]

What a cutie! Great content as usual 👍

[@vlanza1999]

Stupid question, I planted a golden delicious only a few feet from a pink lady, which were both near a ton of wasps in a nearby Juniper. My first fruiting off the golden delicious, I got a massive crop (from a very small tree) but some were pink. Did I inadvertently create a golden lady?

[@SkillCult]

No, they don't change from cross pollinationg. Some GD can have a pink blush, especially on the sun side. Also often have red speckles.

“Can we have pie now?”

[@danielgeng2306]

Exactly my thought !

[@SkillCult]

Seriously wish I had enough to do a pie test. I'm pretty sure it will make awesome pie/betty/crisp/crumble, and probably sauce. Hopefully it will bear next year.

SkillCult I’ll be around. I enjoy your channel very much, cheers.

[@flatpicknrick6514]

I love my Apples sweet. Kinda like Gretchen ? Oh well . I thought for a minute you were gonna play me a twangy song . Enjoyed the video .

[@SkillCult]

Hey, I respect a good flat picker. I kind of suck at it. I'm a much better finger picker and not that good at that either. There may be a twang ditty in the future.

[@skylerjoaquin8666]

Sounds like a winner for an early apple. Did you pop many seeds of this cross?

[@SkillCult]

I saved the seeds from the last one and dropped them in the apple seed medley I'm keeping. There are several other crosses of this same parentage, at least two more. Hopefully they will show more flavor traits of the parents. I was really hoping for a Wickson-ish taste from this one, especially because I can see the lineage in that direction, but it really doesn't taste much like either parent.

[@JaredaSohn]

Great video, very interesting topic. What happened to this year's cordwood challenge announcement? Did you come to any note worthy conclusions regarding the more expensive Council Tool Boys Axe?

[@SkillCult]

I've now got three council models in my possession, and plan to eventually do a video talking about it. I would mostly recommend the new sport utility boys axe at this point. They are all very similar in design and handles, but I think the quality consistency is going to be better on the sport utility than the cheap one.

[@SkillCult]

Cordwood challenge is now run by Ben Scott. I had to drop it due to limited resources and competing interests. I hope to be involved again soon. Right now I'm just trying to play catch up. You can find the page on facebook. that's the hub, or follow ben scott.

[@Hayley-sl9lm]

So you're growing w/o rootstock, or you're growing the new variety from seed and then using it as a scionwood? I wonder if you're collecting any info on the root growth characteristics of the difference crosses. They'd be full sized I guess but I wonder if they might have any other traits of value. Might be cool to have a variety with good overall characteristics that people could grow without grafting.

[@SkillCult]

No,they are grafted out onto dwarfing stock to get to this stage. After that, if the cultivar is good, it get's grafted to propagate it out into the world further. Seeds produce genetically unique apples and grafting produces clones. I really don't have to data on root growth so far. some have bur knot and would probably root easily, but most apples are hesitant to grow roots from cuttings. Air laying might work well, been meaning to try that.

[@Hayley-sl9lm]

@@SkillCult Cool! I was just thinking how reliant we are on rootstocks. I know that there are a lot available, but it seems like the variety is nothing compared to the amount of fruit varieties we have. It might be nice to have an apple tree that could just grow as it is, one organism w/o undergoing this process of frankensteining it together with another tree (grafting is cool though). Or it might just be nice to have more varieties of rootstocks-- those wouldn't be as fun to breed though I bet.

[@SkillCult]

@@Hayley-sl9lm There are definitely advocates for "own root" trees v.s. grafted. I don't have a lot of opinion, but rootstocks do give up certain characteristics to choose from like disease resistance and water logging or drought resistance, precociousness etc. I think they are all just tools and have their place. It's just figuring out where and when to use those tools.

[@TheOneWhoHasNoSkin]

The best intro!

[@MrMousedude]

"skillcult dot coooooom " he must have blown his whole special effects budget on that one shot.

[@SkillCult]

@@MrMousedude I spare no expense when it comes to branding.

[@mr.zardoz3344]

Now see if you could make some Apple Jack out of them! I so happy for your success 👍

[@SkillCult]

Been meaning to try making it in the freezer. I'm more interested in Calvados though.

[@Eamonnmhac]

Came for axes, stayed for apples

[@scottlanghorst1483]

Ever hear of a September Ruby?

[@SkillCult]

no, I haven't

[@obyvatel]

Is it possible that the apple flavor will develop as the tree matures?

[@SkillCult]

Possibly. I think it could improve overall considerably in size, texture and flavor as the tree matures and is just more healthy and better cared for. Some trees just don't thrive on neglect and given the conditions and age of this tree, I'm pretty surprised with the size and beauty and quality of the few apples it bore this year. Only time will tell, but I don't think the overall character of the apple will really differ a lot, just a little room for improvement. That's okay, it could be a very useful pre-gravenstein fruit.

[@obyvatel]

@@SkillCult Thanks for the response and video. I've heard any apple can be used for cider or vinegar. We combine our boring sweet apples with the sour curmudgeonly apples to get a balanced applesauce.

[@SkillCult]

@@obyvatel In making hard cider, you want a measure of acidity and sharp apples are used in blends to add acid as needed. I have a feeling this would be on the sharp side as a single variety, but most ciders are blends anyway. I agree, applesauce should have decent measure of acidity to be sprightly and not just bland sweet paste. Can't wait to get enough of these to cook with!

[@BVisser7]

Great… now I’m hoarding apple seeds. 😂

[@daveyjoweaver5183]

Looks delicious! Thanks Kindly for this make me hungry for an apple vid! Thanks to your friend and great northern adventures! I kept waiting and waiting for a tune on the guitar but not! Please make it play in a future vid, yes????? Thanks Kindly Steven! Always Love Skillcult vids! Lovely women are an addef bonus too! Love, Light, Peace and Fine Apples! DaveyJO

[@SkillCult]

Hiya Davey. I've been playing a little more, but hard to make enough time. I'm getting back in the swing though, so could happen.

[@scottlanghorst1483]

Apple cider potential?

[@SkillCult]

I would think okay for juice at least, maybe cider if you reallywanted cider apples that early. This one hasn't really been awesome the past couple of years. not sure I'll ever release it. But then it might do some things here that other apples don't in that season. Probably a better cooker than most of it's seasons fruits.

[@toadstkr]

Reeling her in with twangy apples 🍏 lol

[@David-kd5mf]

You ever mess with true potato seed and breeding your own potatoes?

[@SkillCult]

No. I got some from Tim Springston of oxbow farms, but never grew any. Too many other projects. Cool thing to pursue though. Check out Tim if you haven't. He does potato and potato reveal vids a lot. kzbin.info/www/bejne/l3K3XnV7aL6Nras

[@David-kd5mf]

@@SkillCult ok I will check it out

[@MrBede-eb7cd]

I knew John Connor had a sister.

[@gpozdol7912]

The mullet probably thought you were growing pot.

[@albertbierstadt1190]

Was that. Rhonda Rousy?

[@SkillCult]

She hits like Rhonda Rousy. It's fist bump, not fist punch ;)

[@albertbierstadt1190]

Awesome!

[@richardsullivan1776]

Steven are you kin to Johnny Appleseed?

[@SkillCult]

He's my nephew.

[@lilbiscuitable]

Hard cider.

[@SkillCult]

I think it would be a little too sharp without blending. Unfortunately I didn't think to take a brix reading.

[@nonsquid]

How about Gretch Twang as a name?

[@kinnikuzero]

First time early and I'm not sure what to say

[@vaastonline]

Do I sense romance in the air?

[@spandex7055]

Came for the apple, stayed to look at Gretchen's stomach. It's a winner.

[@Anson120]

She moved WTF.

[@hemansr3893]

Are you a giant?

[@SkillCult]

Yes.

[@kinnikuzero]

Damn her belly is so distracting lol

[@XoroksComment]

Good looking belly tho 😄

[@scotttaylor9507]

Kinda generic, right? They can't all be Fujis.

[@SkillCult]

Kinda on the tame side. Remember though, my bar is always set pretty high. I think it's going to have some character when it's just right, but one of those that's not "just right" for very long. typical of almost all early apples, William's Pride and Chestnut being exceptions.

[@veshtitsacraftsandtunes4693]

FARMER JOHN HAS FOUND A WIFE

[@TheOneWhoHasNoSkin]

This aged poorly