Sweet-Tart · Bright · Bold
The Jonathan apple is a quintessentially American heirloom. The most scientifically supported account places its discovery on the farm of Philip Rick in Woodstock, Ulster County, New York, sometime around the turn of the 19th century. DNA profiling supports the theory that the Jonathan is a chance seedling of the Esopus Spitzenburg.
Rick's friend Jonathan Hasbrouck brought the apple to the attention of Judge Jesse Buel, president of the Albany Horticultural Society, in 1826. Buel championed it in his agricultural writings, and the apple was renamed "Jonathan" in honor of Hasbrouck.
By the end of the 19th century, the Jonathan had been planted in virtually every American state. It became a staple of 20th-century breeding programs, producing celebrated offspring including Jonagold, Jonamac, and Idared. Though largely displaced in commercial markets, the Jonathan endures in heirloom orchards as a flavor standard against which other apples are measured.
A standout pie apple. The Jonathan holds a gentle shape in baking — it softens but does not collapse. Its low juice content prevents the dreaded "soggy bottom" pie. The bright tartness balances pie sweetness perfectly, requiring less added sugar than sweeter varieties.
