[Apple-Crop] MAIA 2016 newsletter

[David Doud]

Hello Claude - 

As we’ve talked about evaluating seedlings, looking for ‘outliers’ has always been mentioned - breeding with parents that we consider the best desert apples produce a lot of ‘pretty good’ progeny and very few seedlings that lie outside the parameters of the parents - but there are a handful we’ve identified that now exist in multiple locations as second test trees - I doubt there will be enough fruit associated with them next season for a lot of study tho - 

one of my biggest horticultural regrets is losing a cultivar from my grandfather’s orchard - it was in the row next to the property line, had shiny, distinctive, hard apples that looked like they should be delicious but were unpalatable for fresh eating - 45 years ago I didn’t know (and grandfather and cousin Jim who had ran that orchard were gone and couldn’t tell me) but I am now confident that tree was a hard cider apple variety with a lot of the cider making qualities that are lacking in desert varieties - all gone now tho - 

I’ve forwarded your email to Diane and Amy in case they are not monitoring this list - thanks for your observations and positive thoughts - 
David 


> On Dec 15, 2016, at 11:45 AM, Claude Jolicoeur <cjoliprsf at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> David,
> I was most interested to see in this newsletter that you are initiating effort to develop genuine cider apples.  As far as I know, this would be the first program in modern era in North America to explicitely search for cider apples. There has been one in France and one in England, but none on this continent.
> 
> Most interesting is that you will be searching for them within seedlings that have NOT been selected for table apples. In effect, a seedling that has been selected as a good dessert apple stands very little chances of being excellent for cider making purposes because the selection criteria are fundamentally different when we talk cider... For example:
> Everything related to visual aspect is of prime importance for a table apple, but not at all for a cider apple.
> For the flavor, we are looking for entirely different profiles. For a table apple, we want freshness (medium to high acidity) medium sugar (we don't want a cloying sweet apple) and no bitterness - a slight astringency would be acceptable however. For a cider apple, tannins in general and bitterness will be welcome, and we would be seeking lower acidity and higher sugar. Actually a "bland" and a cloying sweet apple could make a good cider apples...
> On flesh texture, we want the dessert apple to be firm and crisp. For the cider apple, we rather want an apple which will release its juice easily.
> Most of the selection criteria for tree would however be similar, relating to productivity, resistance, etc.
> I any case, sure you have much better chances to find a great cider apple from the rejects of the dessert apple program!
> 
> I wish you best success - we badly need it!
> 
> Claude Jolicoeur
> 
> Author, The New Cider Maker's Handbook <http://www.chelseagreen.com/the-new-cider-makers-handbook/>
> http://www.cjoliprsf.ca/ <http://www.cjoliprsf.ca/>
> 
> 
> 
> Le 2016.12.15 00:19, David Doud a écrit :
>> Volume 2 of the ‘Ortet’ has been published and is available at the Midwest Apple Improvement Association website - http://midwestapple.com/index.php <http://midwestapple.com/index.php>
>> 
>> Here is a direct link to it - http://midwestapple.com/_PDF/_Newsletters/ORTET2016.pdf <http://midwestapple.com/_PDF/_Newsletters/ORTET2016.pdf>
>> 
>> If anyone has any questions, I’ll be happy to answer or find the answer. 
>> 
>> Last years edition is currently unavailable online as we had to change a couple of phrases to help with international trademark protection efforts - it will be back on the site next month.
>> 
>> David Doud - grower, Indiana
>> this past season’s crop was not the finest for which I’ve been responsible, but there is a home for every piece of fruit - 
> 
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