Fall is in the air! It’s that time of the year to start thinking about our delicious Michigan apples. Michigan is the nation’s 3rd largest apple producer. There are more than 9.2 million apple trees in the state covering 36,500 acres on 850 family run farms. Michigan grows more than 16 varieties of apples all harvested within a three month period. Apples are the largest and most valuable fruit crop grown in Michigan.

HONEYCRISP APPLES

Two of the hottest Michigan apples on the market right now are the Honeycrisp apple and SweeTango apple. Honeycrisp apples were developed in Minnesota during the 1960’s, patented in 1988 and released to the public in 1991. The Honeycrisp apple is prized for its sweetness, firmness and tartness making it the ideal eating apple. The Honeycrisp apple has much larger cells than most apples which rupture when bitten, filling your mouth with juice. The Honeycrisp apple is hard to beat when it comes to sweetness and flavor in the apple world. You can find large fresh displays of Michigan Honeycrisp apples in all three of our Nino Salvaggio’s locations.

SWEETANGO APPLE

Another outstanding Michigan apple newer to the market is the SweeTango apple. The SweeTango apple was also an apple developed by the University of Minnesota. The SweeTango is a cross between a Zestar apple and a Honeycrisp apple giving it a sweetness, firmness and bit of tartness along with a slight hint of brown sugar from the Zestar apple. The SweeTango apple is a great eating apple, but can also be used in pies and different baking applications as well. Its texture and crispness makes it one of the most versatile apples Michigan has to offer. Nino’s Apple Guide can help you find additional apple baking and/or eating recommendations using your favorite apple variety.

The distinct flavors of the Honeycrisp apple and SweeTango apple set them apart from any other apple varieties available. Be sure to pick up some Honeycrisp apples and SweeTango apples the next time you’re in Nino’s shopping. They’ll be sure to make your taste buds “dance”.