Move Over Honeycrisp -- There's A New Apple In Town

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Most of us don't think of winter as a time to get fresh, locally grown apples, but one company is hoping to change that

Honeybear, a company that markets fruit grown in Minnesota and Wisconsin, is debuting its newest apple called Pazazz.

It has the Honeycrisp texture but is grown to reach its peak in the January and February months.

"This is one you can put on your radar," president of Honeybear Fred Wescott said. "The reason we call it Pazazz is because it has high sugar but it's got alsothe acidity. So, the acidity gives it the zing and pazazz is at the end."

This winter marks the first time the Pazazz apple is ready for market and over the next several weeks Minnesotans will get their first taste.

"Got a little zing to it, make you want to do a dance step," Wescott said

"I liked it a lot. I like the flavor. It's great," Julie Theisen, of Brooklyn Park, said.

This new apple is a cross between the Honeycrisp and some unknown variety which gives it the texture of that seasonal favorite with a bolder taste.

"We always go through that time where the Honeycrisp prices get out of hand, but I think I'm going to switch to this apple. I really like it," Bill Hartman, of Maple Grove, said.

What makes this unique is its shelf life.  Like every other apple grown in the region, this fruit newbie is picked during the fall harvest.

While most apples begin to lose their flavor almost instantly, the science behind Pazazz's starch to sugar chemistry allows this variety to peak months after it's off the tree.

"It doesn't decline from the point of harvest. It improves and keeps running," Wescott said.

And that means fresh, local produce in what's typically thought of as the apple off-season.

"Trying to find local grown foods all year is a big challenge," Terese Blank, of Maple Grove, said.

"This is a game changer," Wescott said.

If you want to try these apples, in-store samples started this week at several cub foods stories around the metro.

They will be available until they run out.

January 28

• Cub (Maple Grove)
• Cub (Midway)
• Cub (Bloomington/Lyndale
• Cub (Shorewood)

January 29

• Cub (Eagan North)
• Cub (Eagan West)
• Cub (Eagan East)
• Cub (Knollwood)

January 30

• Cub (Lake Street)
• Cub (Eden Prairie)

February 5

• Cub (Stillwater)
• Cub (Crystal)
• Cub (West St. Paul)

February 6

• Cub (Stillwater)
• Cub (Plymouth)
• Cub (Chanhassen)
• Cub (Shakopee)