When Are Jazz Apples Ripe?

Features

• The Jazz apple is a club apple, meaning that it is licensed from the New Zealand developer to a club or limited number of growers. This licensing agreement, designed to keep the apple quality up and the market strong for the apple, means that the apple's price is typically higher and its availability more limited. The Jazz, a specially developed apple tailored to meet consumer demand for a more flavorful apple, is a medium-to-small apple with a good storage life. It stands apart from most supermarket apples due to its two-color red and yellow appearance when ripe.

Tree Ripe

• The Jazz apple harvests in late season, meaning it is ripe for picking in the United States during autumn and in New Zealand during May. Jazz apple trees thrive on trellis planting. Trained along wire supports, the trees grow narrow and long instead of bushy. Benefits include better sun exposure for the trees and more support in windy conditions. The fruit matures on the underside of the branch, making the ripe fruit easy to pick.

Market Ripe

• In the supermarket or at a farmers' market, choose a ripe Jazz apple based on its color. A ripe Jazz apple is bicolored -- red mixed with yellow or light green skin coloring. The deep red overshadows the lighter orange, yellow or green color. When the apple does not have deep red tones, it tastes more like its mild Braeburn ancestor, which, though edible, does not have the crisp flavor of a ripe Jazz. A ripe Jazz has heft; it is solid and firm. If you put the apple in the palm of your hand, it does not feel soft or light. Avoid apples with soft spots, bruises or wrinkled skin.

Uses

• The Jazz apple offers sweet, juicy flavor for snacking. Due to its dense flesh, the Jazz is difficult to bite and is easier eaten when sliced. The flesh is firm and yellow. Because it is a firm apple, the Jazz holds its shape in baking. Its flavor holds well during cooking. The Jazz appears in U.S. markets in November and December, well-timed for the holiday dessert season. Store ripe Jazz apples in the refrigerator.