New York Crisp Delight: Jonathan Apples Fresh from the Orchard, Delivered to Your Door – Savor the Distinctive Crunch of Excellence

It is aromatic, juicy and sprightly tart-sweet, often with a lightly spicy or vinous old-fashioned apple character.

Fresh Jonathan can be firm and crisp-tender, but it is not an ultra-hard modern apple and becomes more tender with maturity and storage.

They are usually medium-sized, with lively red flush and carmine striping over a pale yellow ground and white to yellowish flesh.

Sun exposure, strain or sport, maturity, crop load and weather all affect red coverage and intensity.

Both, leaning tart. The classic description is “sprightly subacid” — bright acidity with enough sugar behind it to stay balanced rather than sour.

Very. Historic descriptions consistently call the flesh fine, tender and juicy, and that juiciness is a large part of why the variety was prized for dessert as well as cooking.

They are noticeably aromatic — one of the traits breeders kept reaching for when they used Jonathan as a parent. A ripe one perfumes a bowl.

White to yellowish, and occasionally faintly pink just under the skin where the red colour runs deepest.

Yes — this is exactly the apple for that complaint. Jonathan has the acidity and aroma that most modern sweet varieties were bred away from.

Yes. Fresh fruit has a lively crisp-tender bite; texture softens as the apple matures and sits. That is normal for the variety and part of why it is best eaten in season.

Historic accounts describe small dark skin spots developing on fruit held too long — a storage trait well documented for this variety. It affects appearance rather than safety, and it is a good reason to refrigerate promptly and eat Jonathan by condition rather than treating it as a long keeper.

Medium, generally. Size shifts with orchard conditions and season, and historic sources noted that climate and site changed Jonathan’s size and colour noticeably from region to region.

On the thinner side compared with a modern storage apple, which is part of its eating appeal and part of why it bruises more easily in a retail supply chain.

Not for fresh eating — the skin is thin and pleasant. For a smooth pie filling or a fine sauce, many cooks peel it; for a rustic sauce the skin adds colour.

Yes. Historic pomologists ranked Jonathan highly as a dessert apple because of its aroma, juice and lively flavor.

Yes. Jonathan contributes strong apple flavor and acidity. Blend with a firmer apple such as Northern Spy when you want more defined slices.

Yes. They make a fragrant, lively sauce and can be blended with sweeter apples if desired.

Yes, especially in a blend where their sugar, acidity and aroma can complement more tannic or bittersweet apples.

Fresh eating first, then pies, crisps, cakes, sauce, baked apples and cider blends. Its aromatic acidity survives heat, which is why the flavour still reads clearly in a baked dish.

Roughly six to eight medium apples for a 9-inch double-crust pie. Because Jonathan softens readily, many bakers use half Jonathan for flavour and half of a firmer apple for structure.

Less than a firm keeper like Northern Spy. Jonathan breaks down more readily, which is a virtue in sauce and a reason to blend it in a pie where you want distinct slices.

Often yes. Pair it with a firmer, structured apple and you get Jonathan’s aroma and acidity plus slices that stay defined — a classic two-apple pie approach.

Very good, and there is a full Jonathan Orchard Crisp recipe on this page. Its acidity keeps the sweet oat topping from tasting flat.

Usually less than you would expect. Jonathan cooks down fragrant and lively, so the sauce tastes of apple rather than sugar even with a light hand.

If you cook the fruit with the skins on, the red pigment bleeds into the flesh and tints the sauce. Leaving the skins in and sieving afterwards is the traditional way to get that colour.

Yes — sliced and frozen, Jonathan works well for later pies, crisps and sauce, and freezing is a sensible way to carry a short season further into the year.

Excellent, particularly with sharp cheddar — the apple’s acidity cuts the fat. There is a Jonathan, cheddar and walnut salad recipe on this page.

Yes. Roast wedges alongside pork, cabbage, squash or onions; the acidity keeps a rich dish from feeling heavy.

Yes — it cooks down readily and its aroma survives the long slow reduction that apple butter needs.

The flavour is ideal — sharp fruit against sweet coating. Choose firm, freshly picked fruit, since a softer late-season Jonathan is harder to work with on a stick.

Jonathan is a fall apple. Exact timing varies by region, orchard and season; use Honeycrisp.com's live availability for the current crop.

Refrigerate promptly in a crisper drawer or ventilated produce bag and inspect regularly.

Historic storage was possible, but appearance and texture could decline and dark skin spotting was reported. Buy and enjoy according to fruit condition.

Autumn. Jonathan comes in during the fall harvest and the window is short — see Harvest Times for the current season’s schedule.

Several weeks in good condition if refrigerated promptly, but Jonathan is not an ultra-long keeper. Judge it by condition rather than by the calendar, and eat the best fruit first.

Refrigerate soon after arrival, ideally in a crisper drawer to hold humidity, away from strong-smelling foods. Cold slows both softening and skin spotting.

For a few days, yes. Longer than that and a tender-fleshed apple like Jonathan will soften noticeably — the fridge is the right home for the rest.

Often yes, from a fall harvest with prompt refrigeration, though it depends on the season and how the fruit was handled. It is a better eating apple in October than a storage apple in January.

More readily than a thick-skinned modern storage variety. Handle gently, keep them cold, and do not stack heavy fruit on top.

Cool nights ahead of harvest generally sharpen flavour and colour in autumn apples. Jonathan picked in a cool spell tends to show its aroma and acidity well.

Jonathan is seasonal and may be limited. The products displayed above show the current availability or future-season status.

No. Jonathan is planted in our Growing For Future Seasons block, so it is not part of this year’s harvest or shipping lineup. Everything we are packing right now is on the shipping-now page.

Nothing happened to the apple — what changed was the grocery business. Jonathan is tender-fleshed, ripens in a short autumn window and does not hold a flawless look through months of storage, so as controlled-atmosphere storage and firmer modern varieties reshaped produce aisles, supermarkets stopped stocking it and many orchards replanted. It is still the same apple it always was; you just have to buy it from someone who grows it on purpose.

Three practical reasons: a short late-summer to autumn season, flesh that softens sooner than a modern storage apple, and a tendency to show dark skin specks after long storage. None of those matter much when fruit goes from the orchard to you in days — but they matter enormously to a retailer who needs months of shelf life. That gap is exactly the one we ship into.

We grow Jonathan, but it is in our Growing For Future Seasons block — the trees are in the ground and it is not part of this year’s shipping lineup. If you want that same aromatic, tart-sweet character from fruit shipping right now, McIntosh and Cortland are the closest in the boxes we are packing today. See what is shipping now.

We ship across the continental United States, but Jonathan is not in this season’s harvest — it sits in our future-seasons planting. Everything currently packing is on the shipping-now page.

They are genuinely different apples — Jonagold is Jonathan’s child, sweeter, larger and milder, and it is not a substitute if you remember Jonathan’s sharp aromatic bite. Jonathan itself is in our future-seasons planting rather than this year’s crop.

Far less than at their peak. Jonathan was once one of America’s leading red dessert apples, particularly through the Midwest, and it has been squeezed out of mainstream production by varieties bred for shipping and shelf life. Orchards that grow for flavour rather than logistics still plant it.

Not this season. Jonathan is planted for future seasons rather than this year’s crop, so there is no Jonathan order window to announce yet. Harvest Times is where varieties appear as they come into bearing.

Not this year — Jonathan is not part of the current shipping lineup. Bulk cases of the varieties we are packing now are on the bulk case page.

Not from this season’s crop. For a gift box shipping now, see the current lineup — Macoun and Cortland suit anyone who likes the old aromatic New York apples.

Yes. Jonathan is a single cultivar, propagated by grafting for nearly two centuries, so the fruit you order today is genetically the same apple you remember from childhood. If it tastes different from your memory, that is usually maturity and freshness, not the variety.

Pack sizes are set per season, and Jonathan is not in this year’s lineup, so there is no current case count to quote. Counts and weights for everything shipping now are on each product listing.

Yes — most photos are stock photos giving a general idea of what the fruit looks like, not the specific apples you’ll receive.

Because the modern produce chain optimises for firmness, uniform colour and months of storage, and those traits cluster in a handful of related varieties. Older cultivars like Jonathan were selected for flavour by people who ate them within weeks of picking, which is a different problem entirely.

It is worth seeking out if you like acidity and perfume rather than plain sweetness — though it is not in this season’s lineup here. The nearest thing we are shipping now is McIntosh, which shares the aromatic, tender character.

No — we are an orchard, not a nursery. We grow Jonathan and ship the fruit. For trees you would need a nursery supplier.

Whatever variety you order, contact us if fruit arrives damaged — see shipping information for how we handle delivery issues.

Our mixed boxes draw from whatever is packing that week, and Jonathan is not in this season’s crop. The Apple Mixer lets you combine the varieties that are.

See our shipping and handling page for packing, delivery timing and storage guidance that applies across every variety we ship.

Yes. Jonagold was bred from Golden Delicious × Jonathan.

Yes. Idared was bred from Jonathan × Wagener.

Jonathan appears deeper in RubyFrost's family tree through Monroe and Autumn Crisp; it is not a direct parent.

Jonagold offers family resemblance with more size and sweetness; Idared is firmer and tarter; McIntosh offers aromatic tenderness; Northern Spy gives stronger pie structure.

Idared is Jonathan’s child and the nearest widely available stand-in — brighter and firmer. Jonagold shares the parentage but is sweeter and milder. For aroma and acidity in an older apple, Winesap is the closest in spirit.

Jonagold is Jonathan crossed with Golden Delicious — larger, sweeter, honeyed and milder. Jonathan is smaller, sharper and more aromatic. If you want the old flavour, you want the parent.

Idared is firmer and keeps longer, so it is the better late-winter apple. Jonathan has more perfume and a more tender bite, so it is the better apple in season.

Both are aromatic Northeast classics that soften with time. McIntosh is more perfumed and breaks down faster; Jonathan is sharper, a shade firmer and holds up marginally better in the oven.

Northern Spy for structure — it holds distinct slices. Jonathan for flavour. Using both in one pie is the traditional answer.

They are close. Winesap reads spicier and denser; Jonathan reads more perfumed with a finer, more tender flesh.

Yes by any reasonable definition — a chance seedling from around 1800, first described in 1826, propagated ever since. See our heirloom apple collection for others of its generation.

Jonagold (with Golden Delicious) and Idared (with Wagener) are the best known. Jonathan also appears in the pedigrees of Monroe, Chieftain and Jonamac, and sits deeper in the family tree of RubyFrost®.

Jonathan is a historic New York dessert and cooking apple known for red skin, aromatic tart-sweet flavor, juicy fine-textured flesh and major influence in apple breeding.

The strongest historical record places the original tree on Philip Rick's farm in Ulster County, New York, commonly associated with Woodstock or the Kingston area.

Judge Jesse Buel published the first known description in 1826.

Buel named it for Jonathan Hasbrouck, who is credited with calling the apple to his attention.

The historical account credits Jonathan Hasbrouck with bringing the apple to Buel’s attention; Buel subsequently honored him in the variety’s name.

Early names included Ulster Seedling, Esopus Spitzenberg (New) and New Esopus Spitzenberg.

The National Fruit Collection lists Esopus Spitzenburg × unknown. It is treated as a likely seedling relationship, not a fully documented controlled cross.

No. Jonathan arose as a seedling and has been maintained by conventional grafting.

The original seedling is dated to around 1800 and the first published description came in 1826, so Jonathan has been grown and eaten in America for roughly two centuries.

No. A nineteenth-century account reported the original tree on Philip Rick’s Ulster County farm was still living in 1845, but every Jonathan since has been propagated by grafting from that line.