I have never seen the Commons so busy. This is my first year at Cornell and therefore my first Apple fest. It was a super cool experience. We started the day listening to a podcast about types of apples and then we discussed the types of apples that Cornell grows. After, we walked over to the commons and saw it flooded with people and stalls selling everything and apples. The weather was beautiful and everyone there was in such a good mood it was a great day. Me and my friends picked up some concord grapes that ended up making our room smell amazing. In addition, we got some mac and cheese for lunch that was incredible.

Before this Saturday, I knew that we had the Cornell orchards but I did not realize the extent of it. I did not know that Cornell bred its own varieties. In addition, we discussed the naming of apples- especially Ruby Frost. I had never thought about the naming of apples and it was interesting to hear the reasoning behind some of the names and was surprised that the names all made very logical sense. Finally, I tasted many apples at the fest and they were incredible. I will definitely be going to back to the fest next year.

Applefest was a fun and certainly a tasty experience for me. Being a first-timer, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised. Before heading out to the commons, we learned about the apple economy that is so important here in upstate NY. I was fascinated to learn that Cornell has it’s own patented apples. I may or may not have bragged about this to my friends..

The commons were filled with stands and stands of people selling apple and non-apple products. I’m proud to say that almost all of my purchases were apple related, I definitely got the true applefest experience. I made an entire round through all the streets and stands with my friends first to scout out what exactly we wanted. It was a bit overwhelming with SO many options and new foods and products I have never seen. Just getting through all the stands took longer than expected, but it was well worth it. I bought myself some hot apple cider, apple cider donuts, fresh apples, apple pie, maple popcorn, and the most interesting buy, an apple caramel macaroon. The highlight of the trip was definitely getting fresh apple cider donuts right before they ran out.

Surprisingly I am not tired of eating everything apple, in fact I think applefest gave me a newfound appreciation for apples and all the treats that they make possible. I will definitely be going back to applefest next year and filling my stomach with everything apple!

Apple Fest was an exciting experience I will make sure to visit annually. As a sucker for homemade goods and small businesses, I spent more time at Apple Fest then I originally planned for. There was one business, Kingsley Street, I was especially looking forward to. In the summer before coming to Cornell, I visited the Lititz Craft Fest (Lititz is a small suburb outside of Lancaster, Pennsylvania). Kinglsey Street was at the Lititz Craft Fest and since I bought some items they gave me a 15% off coupon for their shop online. Just two weeks before Apple Fest, I ran out of the sugar scrub I bought, so I purchased another using the coupon, promo code Lititz17. When picking up the package at Flora Rose Main desk, I noticed it was particularly heavy for the small bottle I ordered. I opened the package and to my surprise I found 3 free bars of soap and a handwritten letter along with my sugar scrub. The note read, “Thanks for shopping with us, we will be at the Ithaca Apple Fest this year so come visit us!” I couldn’t believe what a small world it was.

All in all, Apple Fest was a great experience and Kingsley Street has a lifetime customer!

This past week I attended AppleFest down in the Ithaca Commons, which was every bit as wonderful as last year. In particular,  Professor Blalock gave an interesting presentation before heading down to the festival about some new developments in the apple market. He talked about “club apples”: apples that are only allowed to be grown by a few licensed growers. This is in contrast to apples like Honeycrisp, which can be grown by basically anyone as long as they pay royalties to the grower who initially developed the apple. This new model has upsides and downsides: on the one hand, this makes the apples much less widespread (especially in smaller communities). On the other hand, with a tighter control of the growers, a breeder can more easily ensure the quality of the product. This model is more conducive to the notion that an apple variety is a “brand”: with marketing and a fancy name to boot. Cornell currently has two club apples in development; RubyFrost and SnapDragon. They’re not on the market yet but you may see them in stores in a few years.

The festival itself was great: everything apple you could possibly find. Cider, doughnuts, crisp, cobbler. It’s also a good opportunity to get a change of scenery from the Cornell campus and just relax for a few hours. Overall, highly recommended.

I absolutely loved apple fest last week! I was impressed by the variety of apple-related products. I’m glad that some of the lines were so long, because otherwise I would have been very tempted to try everything. As it was, I went for hot apple cider, apple pie, and an apple dumpling. Each was delicious, and the cider was perfect for warming up after walking around in the light chill.

It was very interesting to learn about the details behind apple-farming. I didn’t know that producing varieties of apples was complicated or competitive. It was also neat to learn about the apples that Cornell has recently developed- SnapDragon and RubyFrost. When my sister and I were younger, to prevent the fruit from turning brown in our lunchboxes, my mom would cut an apple and an orange together, then put them in the same Ziploc bag. But, RubyFrost doesn’t turn brown after being cut, and it has a bright, attractive color in order to appeal to kids. I was also surprised to learn that apparently, kids generally prefer to eat smaller apples. When my sister and I were younger, we thought that the giant apples were the best thing ever.

After hearing so much about apples, I’m curious to see the Cornell Orchards.

I didn’t go to Apple Fest last year because I’d thought it wouldn’t be worth it. I thought, I could get some apple cider, which I could easily get in a dining hall, or I could finish my work. And of course, I chose my work. But this year I chose to go. And I didn’t just see apple cider. I witnessed the apple’s essential contribution to the local economy. From apple pizza to funnel cake, people came from all over to show off what they could do with an apple. There were plates and plates of slices of many different kinds of apples to try. It was interesting to see how much effort goes into innovating something that is so often ignored, something that you only think about for a few seconds when you plop it in a paper-bag lunch. I also got to hear about the incentives behind RubyFrost and SnapDragon. I learned not only why they were named but also how their names relate to their function. Take RubyFrost, for example. The goal of making RubyFrost was to create an apple that wouldn’t brown when you cut it into slices. No one wants to open their paper-bag lunch to see some brown apple slices. It seems like a simple fix, but it targets a problem that spans a large audience. That’s what makes it technologically innovative. So yes, turns out there’s a lot more to Apple Fest than just apple cider. I can’t wait to go back.

I have never been to apple fest before. This year, the apple fest impressed me so much, because all people were so happy there. Farmers, travelers, local residents were all enjoying the season of harvest. I also know a friend by this festival. She is a transfer sophomore student in CALS, and we talked a lot about how she felt in Cornell, what she enjoyed most, especially the excellent dining halls we all love!

The hot apple cider is a little sweet, but I did feel the pleasure of harvest by it. Now I understand that the apple is only a symbol, what really important is the happiness of harvest and sharing this happiness with people around you.

Applefest was a lot of fun and this year I arrived at the event with new insights! Before the trip to Applefest we learned about how an apple’s DNA can be patented and their name trademarked. I didn’t know that apples were treated like an invention (although this makes a lot of sense) because they’re natural. I also wasn’t aware of Cornell’s role in the world of apples! This gave me more perspective for Applefest.

The walk to Applefest was pleasant and I think I’ll walk their next year too. The food/drink was delicious; I had warm apple cider, an apple donut, and apple mac and cheese. I also ran into some friends at the event which was fun. I get this great sense of community from Applefest when I see other Cornell students but also people from Ithaca College or town. This really brightened a potentially stressful weekend before a prelim. I’m also ready for fall now!

Just before heading down to Ithaca Commons on Saturday (September 30), a group of Scholars and I gathered in the Rose Common Room to learn about the significance of apples to Cornell and its surrounding community. Led by Dr. Blalock, our discussion offered a glimpse into the meaningful process of naming apples. Now, I pay more attention to the names of the apples before mindlessly eating them. I was also amazed to learn that the RubyFrost and SnapDragon apples were developed by Cornell (in partnership with the NYAG), and love that the SnapDragon was made especially for children to get their nutrition. I encourage all members of the Cornell community to take advantage of the rural and agricultural aspects of Cornell, such as the gardens, orchards, and Farmers Market, as these things are not as readily available at urban campuses like Columbia University or NYU. Finally, after going to Apple Fest and learning more about the fruit, I have ditched bananas for apples at the dining hall.

I had a blast at Ithaca’s Apple Harvest Festival last weekend! I enjoyed some great samosas, apple pie mix, and coconut-based ice cream! I’ve actually gone to Apple Fest every year that I’ve been in Ithaca, and I think it’s a local event that generally has a huge positive impact on the Cornell student population.

Apple Fest is the perfect event at the perfect time to give new students a little push to start exploring Ithaca. Its timing is just right: by late September, most students have settled in on campus and are comfortable with the surrounding area. Most don’t have too many prelims yet. It’s just the right moment to introduce them to the Ithaca Commons and the rest of Ithaca beyond Cornell. In addition, the event is food-centric, and food is one of the few motivators that actually works on lazy college students.

The event itself is perfect for giving students a taste of Ithacan culture. It stars local farms and small businesses. It’s a little quirky and alternative. It shows off Ithaca’s foodie culture. It’s extremely popular among families, so students can see that Ithaca is more than a college town. Also, like Ithaca itself, it’s surprisingly multicultural, with Indian, Greek, Thai, Laotian, Latin, and Trini food.

I’d also like to mention that learning about the apple industry before the event was pretty interesting as well! It’s strange thinking about how a simple food like an apple is still designed like any other product. Different breeds can target different audiences and are designed to exhibit different desirable features. I tried the Snapdragons this week, and they are as loud, red, and crisp as the name suggests!

I think I read once that if you ask people to name a fruit, the one they are most likely to come up with is “Apple.” It seems fair to say that apples are the archetypical fruit.  But, upon closer inspection, our relationship to apples is unique.

At least in New England, apples are not just a food, they are part of a cultural experience. Because apples are grown locally, there’s a seasonality to them: you can buy apples all year round, but Apple Season is the Fall. I remember going apple picking with my family as a child; in my mind, the experience is linked with hayrides and pumpkin picking and Halloween.

What I’m getting at is, apples are concrete for me in a way that other fruits are not. Bananas and oranges are just foods. You pick them up at the supermarket, you bring them home, and you eat them. But apples are a part of life.

Before we went to Apple Fest, Prof. Blalock played us a podcast about “Club” apple varieties. Club apples are trademarked, and only a select club of growers are allowed to grow and sell them under the trademarked name. Prof. Blalock then took us through the names for two apple varieties, RubyFrost and SnapDragon. Why Ruby Frost? Ruby for the dark red skin, and frost both for the white interior and in reference to the late harvest. Frankly, I found the exercise kind of ridiculous. Putting that much thought into the name of an apple seems to me like wasted effort. I also learned that an apple variety which I thought was called “Sweet Tango” is spelled “SweeTango”, which is just an unnecessary affront to the English language.

However, talking about names did get me thinking: apples are really the only fruit we sell with a cultivar name attached. When you go to the store, you can pick up Gala apples, or Cortland, or HoneyCrisp. If you want to buy an orange, however, it’s usually just advertised as a Navel Orange – there’s no such thing as an “Orange Delicious” orange. For all that I might think of them as boring, we as consumers have a lot of variety available to us when we shop for apples. Is that simply because we have made more varieties of apples, or because we demand variety from apples that we do not from other fruits?

Attending Apple Fest has given me a new appreciation for apples, and for the unique place that they have in New England life. I highly recommend going, to try various varieties of apples and apple recipes.

Last Saturday, I joined a group of people from Rose in going to Apple Fest. As a lover of all things apple, I have gone to the annual event for the past three years, and this year was just as great as previous ones (actually better since it wasn’t freezing or raining). Before we walked down to the Commons, Professor Blalock gave a brief talk on the economy of apples, particularly club apples. Due to my interest in apples, I had already heard Professor Blalock discuss how apples are patented and trademarked and all of the effort that goes into naming them, when I had gone apple picking with Rose House last year (I discussed it in my blog post here). However, while I had learned about the naming of Snapdragons last year, I had not heard about the other Cornell apple, Ruby Frost (Ruby = red outside, Frost = white inside and late-season apple). Ruby Frost apples in particular interested me, because of the fact that they were developed for a particular purpose. They were specifically designed to be apples for children’s lunches. Children generally will not eat a whole apple for lunch, but they will eat a cut-up one. However, most apples start to turn brown shortly after they have been cut, making the apples look unappealing to eat. The Ruby Frost apple was created to solve this problem. Unlike most apples, the Ruby Frost apple does not brown, making it the perfect apple to cut up for children’s lunches. Furthermore, as we were leaving the talk, one of my friends pointed out another potential application for Ruby Frost apples: salads. Having an apple that does not brown can greatly improve the aesthetic appeal of any food that contains cut pieces of raw apples. In addition, the Ruby Frost apples have the advantage of being a late-season apple (harvested in mid to late October). Since apple growers rely on a relatively small group of migrant workers to pick their apples, having apples that are to be picked at a later time, when the demand for labor is not so high, is greatly beneficial. Overall, it appears that the Ruby Frost apple will be a great addition to the many varieties of apples out there.

Last weekend we first listened to a short NPR podcast about apple marketing and research, then walked to the Apple Harvest Festival! I enjoyed hearing about two apples which Cornell produced, RubyFrost and SnapDragon! It was interesting to hear about some of the ideas leading to these names. RubyFrost, for instance, received its name due to its Ruby colored exterior, white interior, and the fact that its harvested later than most apples.

As someone who personally doesn’t eat apples very often, I was very impressed with all that was at the festival based around apples! There was fresh apple cider, caramel apples, tons of varieties of apples, apple donuts, apple fritters, apple mac and cheese, you name it! I had my first caramel apple, and it was very good. I will definitely try to go again next year.

Our group visit to Applefest was a nice break from the frantic midterm cramming I had been doing. Of course, I knew we would learn a little about the apple trade as well, but I was surprised at just how much there was to know. We learned a little about the Snapdragon and the Ruby Frost apple, and apparently quite a lot of thought goes into their naming. I suppose it makes sense to have an undercurrent of a suggestion in the name of an apple to attract consumers, but the thought that goes into naming them is far more than I would have guessed.

We spoke a little about the genetic modifications of apples and the reasons behind doing so. In order to entice children to eat their packed sliced apples, the Ruby Frost is meant to not brown when sliced. I thought this was a great idea, since I also don’t love browned apples. But then that got me thinking- exactly how good are apples for us anyways? I know they say an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but aren’t they pretty high in sugar? I’m not a dietician and I don’t know, but I can say that all of my apple foods kept me very happy at the festival.

There were a ton of apple vendors, jewelry vendors, and artist vendors at the fair. I was thrilled to see so many people selling their handcrafted art. To me, even baked goods are an art. But mainly I was impressed by the various candles, paintings, jewelry, and clothing that people made. I realized that the applefest is a great way for independent artists to get their stuff out into the world and be appreciated. I’m glad Ithaca provides a means for independent artists to get recognition, and I hope they maybe institute more ways for them to get out there in the future.

This past weekend, I finally had the chance to go to downtown Ithaca and experience Apple Fest.  Since a lot of people told me how good it was last year, I’m glad I decided to go.  Large numbers of Cornell students, Ithaca College students, and Ithaca residents crowded around the many vendors to experience Apple Fest for themselves: it was great to see everyone in this town come together and participate in this event.  The actual products that the vendors were selling at Apple Fest definitely made it worth going to as well: even though I had to wait in a thirty-minute line, I bought several apple cider doughnuts and hot apple cider that were amazing and made the wait worth it; on my way out I also bought a caramel apple that was great too.  Although I only limited myself to foods involving apples, there were many other things that Apple Fest had to offer: other food options, non-food products from local vendors, and a small petting zoo that featured goats in sweaters.  I really enjoyed myself at Apple Fest, and I would definitely recommend that others go, even if they’re only slightly interested: it not only provides a break from working but is an opportunity to take part in a great community-wide event.

The day started off with a short informational session about apples in the Rose Main common room. It was very interesting to learn about the seemingly old-fashioned industry, because it is anything but that! New advancements in science (especially genetics) and agriculture have given rise to different lineages of apples with new functionalities. We talked about the stories behind Ruby Frost and Snap Dragon; a great deal of thinking goes behind the name of an apple. I’m curious to know where Granny Smith apples got their name!

To my surprise, the Apple Festival was much larger than I had anticipated. I was able to try so many different apple products that I wouldn’t have been able to back at home. Unfortunately, I couldn’t buy as many products as I wanted to because an overwhelming amount of vendors only accepted cash. My favorite was the hot spiced apple cider from a cauldron. I avoided candied apples as best as I could because I could hear my dentist’s voice in the back of my head telling me no. In general, my first Apple Fest was a success! I will definitely be going back every year to see what cool new products the vendors come up with.

I found AppleFest to be a great way to meet my fellow Rose scholars as well as an opportunity to explore Ithaca. I was excited — albeit a bit nervous — to indulge in apple pizza. Thankfully, the pizza ended up being a great meal! Prior to this event, I was unaware of Cornell’s role in the apple economy. I was unaware of the apples developed at Cornell and the laws prohibiting certain apples from being farmed in certain states. I was also unaware that you can patent the DNA of an apple — preventing any other farm or company from growing it. Overall, I found the lecture on the apple economy and my visit to AppleFest to be a wonderful event.

One of the great things about apples is that, unlike so many other kinds of produce where uniformity is so encouraged that some perfectly edible fruit is thrown to the wayside for not looking “correct”, in apple growing, diversity is encouraged, to the point that you can have an apple variety like Honeycrisp that’s patent was worth millions dollars. In a world where every banana is a Cavendish banana and every avocado is a Hass avocado, it is truly a wonder that we can have our choice between a Honeycrisp or an Empire or a McIntosh or a Golden Runner, which I had never heard of but tried at Apple Fest. It was also really interesting to hear about the apples that Cornell is working on developing like Rubyfrost and Snapdragon, and the kind of marketing strategies that go into naming an apple variety. It was also great to talk about the important of migrant workers to apple farms. I actually took a class on U.S. immigration and migration, and we talked about exactly the same thing: how there is a huge desire for migrant work in agriculture that simply cannot be met by the native population without huge culture shifts. It was great to actually address that.

I was especially excited for this week’s Rose event: Apple Fest!  It was my first time going and my third time ever going to the Commons.  Before we departed for the festival, Professor Blalock played a NPR segment on the apple business for us- something I never even thought about- and I was a little shocked?  The apple business is apparently a huge, high-tech line of work with fierce competitions, advanced science and a large market.  Apparently apples can be patented and trademarked!  Cornell even has two of their very own unique varieties: Ruby Frost (which doesn’t brown!!) and Snap Dragon.

When we finally arrived at Apple Fest, there was already a substantial crowd of people.  There were blocks of stands selling homemade food (I didn’t buy anything but everything looked delicious- especially the doughnuts!), jewelry, clothes and more.  There were also live performances, carnival games and a mini goat petting area.  The festival was definitely my favorite Rose event so far and I plan on going every year from now on.

Everything a student needs is arguably available on campus: food, shelter, study spaces. Living at Cornell can isolate students who have no need to leave campus from the surrounding community. Thus, opportunities to go down the hill and experience Ithacan culture are inherently valuable and refreshing.  Mostly for this reason I decided to return to Apple Fest this year; I had tried the apples last year, and I thought I knew what to expect this year.

As I anticipated, vendors brought apples of all varieties and sold Fall inspired products from ice cream to fritters to soup. Although I did enjoy a spiced pumpkin soup, some strange apple varieties, and a dairy-free vanilla and pumpkin ice cream, the real treat from the whole event was seeing and petting small, curly-haired, sweater-clad goats–a nice change of pace for someone who rarely even sees dogs on campus. 

Fun fact, apples can be patented and have trademarks! I had no idea that true until I heard the NPR on apples that Professor Blalock played for us. Apparently, the DNA of apples can be patented limiting those who can grow it, but patents expire. The trademark on an apple protects its name and it never expires. I think it is interesting that the apple growing industry is so cliquey and exclusive. It makes me feel kind of special knowing there are certain breeds of apples that only people in my area can grow. Another thing that makes me feel special is the fact that a professor from my school has developed an apple that was designed in Geneva to promote fruit consumption in children lunches. Ruby Frost might be the apple that changes the game. An apple that doesn’t brown is like ice cream that doesn’t melt!

Having just gone to my very first Apple Fest, I was surprised by all the baked goods and other types of food that can be made with apples. From apple cider to apple loaf to apple pizza, there sure was a variety to choose from! I was surprised to learn during our talk with Professor Blalock prior to going to the Apple Fest that Cornell actually grows SnapDragon and RubyFrost. If I just heard these names out of context, I would have never guessed that these were names of apples. However, thinking about these words and the imagery we get from hearing these words makes it more obvious why these names were chosen. I think it is really interesting how much effort and meaning people put into naming things, whether it is food or some other product. As consumers, I do not think we really think twice about why something is named a certain way. I would think that SnapDragon and RubyFrost are unique names for apples but I would never question why they are given these names. Now, I feel like I will be much more observant of the names of apples when I go purchase them and try to figure out why they might be named this way. Since I’ve never actually paid attention to the types of apples, I was surprised to see many different kinds of them sold at Apple Fest!