Orchardist and author Michael Phillips wrote to me, “Fruit quality is always excellent, with very little scab and generally too late for maggot fly interest. This is a divine eating apple that first month off the tree. As crispness starts to fade, Bethel still lays claim to being a prime pie apple for the holidays. We use it as well in cider: think pearmain aromatic with body. Apples develop good color even within canopy so I tend not to prune Bethel quite as heavy.” We also like it baked.

Although brighter red than Blue Pearmain, you can see why it’s in a collection of varieties known as the Blue Pearmain group. Blooms later half of midseason. Z3.