Over the years I’m sure I have tasted hundreds of different apple varieties. I
wouldn’t say I am jaded, but at this point there are relatively few apples I haven’t
tasted—at least ones that are grown in North America.
English apples, though, are another story. Oh, sure, a lot of English apples
have found their way over to this side of the Atlantic, and several of them arguably
grow and taste better in our climes than on their home turf. Ashmead’s Kernel
comes to mind, as does Ribston Pippin and many others.
So it was with some surprise and delight that I first saw and tasted
Mannington’s Pearmain in the fall of 2022. I had never even heard of this
Victorian-era dessert apple before then, and when I tasted one grown in western
New Hampshire, it was something of a revelation.
Comparisons are odious, especially with apples, whose flavor can vary quite
a bit depending on where and how they are grown, the type of season it’s been (dry
or wet year, warm or cool nighttime temperatures in the fall, soil type, and other
factors). But my first reaction to Mannington was to compare it to that most
famous and popular of 19 th -century English dessert apples: Cox’s Orange Pippin.
And, frankly, I consider Mannington’s flavor and fresh eating quality equal or
superior to Cox.
Rather than setting up a card table with a sign that says “Change My Mind”
I’ll just admit upfront that not everyone concurs with me on this opinion. Apple
loyalty is a fierce thing, and I don’t expect generations of Cox fanciers to suddenly
change their stripes. In fact, the celebrated English author E.A. Bunyard, who
wrote The Anatomy of Dessert, considered Mannington only a “meh” eating
apple. Doesn’t mean that I’m wrong and he’s right; it just goes to show that taste is
often a highly subjective and personal thing.
Mannington’s Pearmain is thought to have originated as a seedling that grew
out of some pomace thrown under a hedge around 1770. Its discoverer was a Mr.
Turley, a blacksmith who lived in Uckfield, Sussex. The apple was named for
Turley’s grandson, John Mannington, a local butcher and fruit expert who
introduced the variety in 1847, only a few years before Cox’s Orange Pippin
arrived on the scene.
Given how many years it took me to find a Mannington growing in the U.S.,
I would hope that this rare variety could find a wider audience. The flavor—often
described as rich, balanced, and lightly aromatic—definitely puts this apple in my
“connoisseur’s collection” category.