Here is some information about the varieties of fruit currently available for farm gate collection after payment online.
Each variety is available in two pack formats: a cardboard presentation box containing 12 apples, or a plastic bag containing 4 apples.
You can order and pay on our SumUp page:
https://realenglishfruit.sumupstore.com/
After we have verified your payment, we will supply a code number that you will need to open the locker at our farm gate. We will also you inform you exactly when the apples can be collected. Please note that it is important to collect the apples at a time when there is daylight, so that you can enter the code easily. If you need help, phone 01379 870759 and leave a message, or ring our mobile 0759 6704575.
Once you get home, if you have purchased the 12-apple presentation pack, remove the apples from the cardboard box and put them into the bottom fridge drawer, or into an open-topped container. We recommend taking the fruit out of the box because cardboard tends to absorb water vapour and so could cause shrivelling.
In the case of the 4-apple pack, the plastic bag is already perforated, which it ideal. Just put it into the bottom fridge drawer as it is. Alternatively, take the apples out of the bag and place them into an open-topped plastic container, keeping it in the bottom fridge drawer.
Keep the apples separate from other fruit or strong-smelling foods such as onions or garlic. Remove any apples that are starting to turn soft. Don’t wash the fruit before putting it in the fridge – wash it just before you eat it. When stored correctly, the fruit will stay in optimum condition for at least 10 days, and (depending on the variety) even up to six to eight weeks. We recommend eating the apples with the peel, because a lot of their goodness is in the peel or just below. Dan’s apples are completely natural, grown in the heart of East Anglia. No chemicals are used to improve size and colour. They are picked at exactly the right moment for best eating quality and long keeping.
Suffolk Pink
Suffolk Pink is an early-ripening apple, one of the first fresh apples of the season. This medium-large apple is distinctive for its beautiful colour, a pink blush over a warm yellow-green background. It is fantastically juicy, with a balanced, sweet-tart flavour, and a softer texture, easy to eat and enjoy. Suffolk Pink is a variety that was discovered by Dan Neuteboom in about 1980, a chance mutation possibly originating from Discovery or Worcester Pearmain. Suffolk Pink’s unique colour is produced by Suffolk’s weather conditions, with warm summer days and cool nights – Dan himself discovered that the fruit’s colour requires a fair degree of temperature excursion.
Cox’s Orange Pippin
Cox’s Orange Pippin is still one of the very best apples from the point of view of taste, prized for its complexity of flavour. It dates back to about 1825, raised by amateur horticulturalist Richard Cox at Colnbrook Lawn near Slough, and it was introduced commercially in about 1850. Its parentage is not clear. It may be associated with the varieties Ribston Pippin, Margil, and Rosemary Russet. By the late 19th century, it had become one of Britain’s most celebrated apples. It is famous for its juicy, sweet, aromatic, slightly nutty flavour, with notes of pear, citrus and melon.
Russet
We grow several russet varieties: they are all excellent dessert apples, best in the period from September to December. They are much loved for their unmistakable appearance, their unique rich and nutty flavour, and their fairly crisp and juicy flesh. The russet varieties that we grow include the famous Egremont Russet, introduced back in 1880.
Falstaff
Falstaff is a Cox cross, one of the most successful apple varieties created by East Malling research station. It is crunchy and juicy, with an excellent balance of sweetness and acidity. It is also attractive for its appearance, with a moderate size, and a mottled red flush over a yellow-green background.
Fiesta
Also called Red Pippin, this is a late-keeping eating apple of excellent quality, definitely an under-rated variety. It was introduced in 1987, a cross between Cox’s Orange Pippin and Idared. It has similarities to Cox, in particular its sweet, aromatic, nutty flavour and its red-orange-flushed skin. However, when compared with Cox, it has a much longer shelf life.