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Apples
Empire Apple
✓ VerifiedNew York, USA (1966)
Empire is a deliberate cross of Red Delicious and McIntosh, developed in New York (widely associated with Cornell University's apple breeding program) and introduced in 1966, combining Red Delicious's color and sweetness with McIntosh's crisp, tangy character. The fruit has a red and green skin with characteristic white markings, dense, crisp flesh, and a balanced sweet-tart flavor that has made it a genuinely versatile choice — well regarded for fresh eating, salads, baking, sauce, and freezing alike, and specifically praised for its crunchy texture holding up well in pies.
Submitted by @system · 10 days ago
Counts toward the overall Top Tier Fruit list — every category's votes are compared the same way.
Growing & Care
Hardiness zone
USDA Zones 4-8
Chill hours
~800 hours
Pollination
Needs a pollinator.
Care info
A reliable, widely grown modern variety with good disease resistance.
Recommendations
A solid all-purpose choice combining traits of two classic American apple lineages.
Flavor Profile
Crisp and juicy with a good sweet-tart balance, milder than McIntosh alone
Quick facts
Skin color
Deep red
Size
Medium
Hardiness zone
USDA Zones 4-8
Chill hours
800