Once upon a time, apples were best when they were in season, but you couldn't do anything about that. You ate the variety your tree grew or your store carried, and that was that. Years later, the supermarkets were full of different varieties of apples, all bred for long-distance shipping and year-long storage. There was plenty of variety, but not much joy in their flavor. But now, thanks to consumer backlash, apple aficionados, and scientists, we are in a "Golden Age of Apples."
Apple growers are no longer looking a one variety of apple to please all consumers. Some like their apples really sweet, other prefer tart flavors, and some concentrate on apples for baking. There are people who crave a certain mouth feel when eating an apple, or enjoy the crunch under their teeth. So why not perfect apples for all these folks? But you might wonder what happened to get the apple industry to finally pay attention to the consumer.
It was the Honeycrisp. Honeycrisp apples defined what an apple could be, and its popularity spread like wildfire. If they can breed an apple like this, why couldn't they breed apples for all the qualities consumers like? Read the tale of how the apple industry went from blah to amazing at Scientific American. -via Metafilter
(Image credit: Danielle Scott)