The incredible Winter Wonder story
Winter Wonder is a unique apple variety. It ripens late and stores amazingly well. It is good-looking, with a rusty red blush over the green-yellow background. It is also one of the few very late blossoming varieties, so it is therefore less affected by spring frosts. The flesh is moderately crisp, and it has a complex, aromatic, fairly sharp taste, which sweetens after Christmas. When stored in a cool dark place, it remains in excellent condition right through to March. Winter Wonder was discovered by Dan Neuteboom in 1979 and he owns the only trees in the world of this variety.
Winter Wonder, a millennial history
The Winter Wonder story began about 1,800 years ago when traders were carrying fine silks and perfumes from eastern European areas to Rome, capital of the huge Roman Empire. That was a long trek, taking about 12 weeks to complete. Both for themselves and their horses and oxen, they needed food and fruit that would stay in good condition during their journey. In the wild apple forests around the city named Almaty in Kazakhstan, there were trees that produced a small, flat type of apple which stayed fresh and crisp longer than other varieties. Even in those distant times – over one and a half millennia ago – people were observing nature, managing fruit and propagating promising varieties. So this small apple, which would later be named Court Pendu Plat for its shape, survived over the centuries. In Elizabethan times it was widely grown, and it became known as “the wise apple” because, though not a heavy cropper, it blossomed much later than other varieties and so it would crop even after the late spring frosts that often decimated other earlier-flowering apples. Court Pendu Plat is probably the oldest apple variety still in existence today.
Though Court Pendu Plat was great for surviving spring frost and therefore represented a lifeline, helping people and animals to survive, its eating quality and flavour were not exceptional, particularly when compared with other varieties such as Cox’s Orange Pippin. From 1930 to 1980, Cox had the reputation of being the best-tasting apple in the UK. However, it tends to soften rather quickly after it has been picked. In the 1950s, fruit breeders – in particular, Frank Alston – tried to create a new variety having the fantastic Cox flavour while also remaining crisp for longer. Alston crossed Cox’s Orange Pippin with Court Pendu Plat, and the result was amazing. This new variety, which would later be named Suntan, retained Cox’s flavour, while also gaining the crispness and long life of Court Pendu Plat. It also revealed an intriguing hint of pineapple in its taste.
Dan Neuteboom planted 500 Suntan trees on his farm in Suffolk, and had many years of experience with this variety. He found that, though offering some notable benefits, Suntan has a major problem: it is massively vigorous, and grows with excessive strength on even the weakest rootstocks. In fact, it is no longer grown commercially, because it is so difficult to tame the trees. However, Dan discovered that one of his Suntan trees was very different to the rest, naturally growing with far less vigour. That particular tree remained relatively small. Subsequent analyses showed that it was genetically different from Suntan, a product of nature’s constant tendency to create variations on a theme in order to enhance survival. Dan’s new variety is remarkable, ripening just before the onset of winter, and retaining its superb flavour and crispness for months, from December right through to spring, even without controlled-atmosphere cold storage. It can be kept in optimum conditions by following normal seasonal weather conditions – just keep the apples in a cool garage and they will be fine until the end of March.
This prodigious apple was named Winter Wonder, a name that it fully deserves.
The best English eating apple
Why is Winter Wonder so exceptional when compared to all the other 4,000 registered varieties in the world? The best-flavoured varieties are those which stay longer on the trees, because they have more time to accumulate the organic substances that give rise to the best taste. Winter Wonder is the latest-ripening variety. It has all the flavour of Cox, and it keeps its firmness and flavour for much longer. Geographical location also has a great influence on the fruit’s flavour, and in the UK it has always been found that the best-tasting apples are those grown close to the North Sea. Winter Wonder, which originated in Suffolk and is grown only there, can legitimately be described as the finest eating apple in the UK.
Today, Dan Neuteboom is the only horticulturalist growing Winter Wonder trees. He is working to ensure the survival of this unique genetic heritage, preserving this truly English eating apple for future generations. Today, the internet enables customers all over the country and even abroad to purchase Winter Wonder online.
Winter Wonder customer feedback
“The apples are really tasty. So different to supermarket ones and we both really enjoyed them. The packaging got them to us unbruised and in best condition. In fact, I retained the robust box and cushioning for use when sending something by post in future. Delivery was routine, which is a good thing. Thanks for sending them, they were lovely.” (Mike, Swindon)
“The apples are beautiful, we are really enjoying them. I can honestly say the apples are amazing and would definitely recommend.” (April, Leicester)
“I received my pack of Winter Wonder apples by post in late December, but due to work engagements I was only able to open the pack in early January. The fruit survived the journey and the subsequent two weeks that it spent in the box on my doorstep in the cool winter air, and when I opened the package I enjoyed the rich apple bouquet, something that I remember from my youth when I worked as an apple picker during school holidays. Winter Wonder apples are attractive, and variable in appearance, relatively small by modern standards, generally 70-80 mm in diameter. They have a warm yellow-green base colour with extensive areas of orange-red and some light russetting which adds even more character. When peeled and cut, the bouquet is classic apple, with notes of aromatic, cider, hints of floral, along with touches of banana, melon, mango and pineapple. This extraordinary sensorial complexity is confirmed by the taste released with every bite. Its texture is crisp, not as crisp as the latest modern varieties, but pleasant and refreshing, moderately juicy, with an impeccable balance between tart and sweet. The characteristic that I feel sets Winter Wonder apart from other apple varieties is its remarkable length, namely the persistence of its flavour, lingering on the palate for even a minute or longer, on a par with the very finest wines. Compared with most modern apple varieties, which tend to be simpler and one-dimensional in their flavour, Winter Wonder is incredibly complex and immensely satisfying.” (Rino Noce, Teddington).
