Brown Snout

'Brown Snout'
'Brown Snout'
Species	Malus domestica
Origin	England, c.1850

'Brown Snout' is a 19th-century cultivar of cider apple originating in Herefordshire in the United Kingdom,^[1] though now grown in other counties and parts of the world.

History

Although several different apple varieties have been given this name in the past,^[2] the familiar 'Brown Snout' cultivar of apple is said to have been discovered on the farm of a Mr Dent at Yarkhill, Herefordshire, in the middle of the 19th century.^[3] It was subsequently widely propagated by the H. P. Bulmer company of Hereford,^[2] and was planted in orchards across the west Midlands and, less commonly, in parts of the West Country. The Brown Snout remains a popular cultivar in traditional cider making.

Characteristics

It is a late-flowering variety, classed as a "bittersweet" apple, with relatively high tannins and low levels of malic acid. It makes a medium-sized tree with a stiffly upright habit. The fruit are small and green, with patches of russeting, and a large patch of russeting at the calyx end, giving the variety its name.

'Brown Snout' is very susceptible to fire blight.

References

^ "Brown Snout", National Fruit Collection, University of Reading and Brogdale Collections, retrieved 12 November 2015
^ ^a ^b Morgan, The New Book of Apples, 2013, lvii
^ Copas, L. A Somerset Pomona: the cider apples of Somerset, Dovecote, 2001, p.26