Cosmic

There's a new kid in town and his name is Cosmic. His provenance is complicated but his creators believe his qualities are worth noting. He had a social media presence before being officially introduced to the world and now he is ready to work his way into our lives.

His official name is Cosmic Crisp Apple. And, yes, he is a fruit. He started blipping on our local radar about a month ago as his promotional wave hit the Midwest. One of our local grocery chains gave out samples and featured Cosmic as the latest and greatest apple on the scene. So, of course, I needed to know if all the hype was true.

First, a little background on Cosmic. Breeding for this fellow began in 1997 at Washington State University. His variety designation was WA 38 and his parents were Honeycrisp, a flavor darling for sure, and Enterprise, a disease resistant stalwart in the apple world. The goal was to produce an apple with the classic look of a red apple and the perfect balance of sweet and tart as a flavor profile. The ultimate goal of course is apple sales. Such an investment needs payback. And thus the reason Cosmic Crisp comes at a price.

I purchased a few Cosmic apples as well as another favorite, the Honeycrisp, with the intent of doing a side by side taste test. My husband is a die-hard Honeycrisp fan so he was very skeptical of the challenger. I enjoy a variety of apples so my allegiances run less deep. I cut both apples into slices so we had multiple opportunities to taste the differences between the two contenders.  Here are the results, non-scientific of course.

1) Crispness--Both apples had just the right snap to make them pleasurable on the texture front. There was no noticeable difference and quite frankly, an apple without a good crunch doesn't stand much of a marketing chance so no surprise in this category.

2) Sweetness--Here is where a subtle difference occurs. Honeycrisp has a mild sweetness. My husband likens it to a cucumber's freshness. Cosmic is more assertive. It is definitely sweet but has other notes at play so it tickles the taste buds in a different way.

3) Tartness--This is where the clear difference is evident. Cosmic gives a definite one-two punch in acidity. There is a bit of pucker power involved but not in a little-green-apple way. Honeycrisp is much more subtle and delicate. Sweet is definitely the defining note over acid in the Honeycrisp.

And the winner is (drum roll please)...neither!  My husband remained loyal to his beloved Honeycrisp. His sweet tooth finds the Honeycrisp a favorite with its sugar forward flavor. I loved Cosmic. The acid punch added a dimension that helped tone down the sweetness for me. In reality, the true test lies in the next question, "Which one makes a better pie?"

I hope your New Year is filled with a little sweet, a little acid and a few taste tests along the way. Enjoy!