Recently there has been much media discussion about the viable options farmers have for selling their produce.

There seems to be a big disconnect between what the farmer is paid and the final price of fruit and veg at the supermarket. Our farm is no different from those you may have heard about in the media and has had to change focus.

We are shifting from growing a limited selection of varieties to a more diverse range, including some specialist cider varieties. This opens the doors to exploring unique flavours that make exciting juice blends and ciders, as well as innovative jams and sauces.

We are looking for new tastes. Imagine a nectarine wine or rose cider. As the year progresses we hope to release some of these new creations.

Right now it’s true! We do have Golden Delicious apples at the on-farm shop and online.

This apple is highly sought after and difficult to find, so if you know someone who's waiting for them – make sure you let them know!

A little about Golden Delicious

• They begin their life as a green apple, however turn a gorgeous golden colour as they age.
• They can be incredibly sweet, although have a little acid like a Pink Lady (totally different to a Granny Smith!), and get even sweeter as they get older!
• They are one of the parent apples of Pink Lady! The other parent is called a ‘Lady Williams’.
• They can have a noticeable ‘russet’ on the skin which looks like gold-coloured rough patches. This does not affect the flavour and is characteristic of some varieties.
• As well as an excellent eating apple, these make incredible cooking apples, and are often regarded as one of the best! Perfect for that apple pie you’ve been meaning to make!
• They are very prone to bruising so please be gentle with them!
• They have a lovely texture, slightly different to other apples you might have previously eaten.
• Left to ripen, their skins will go wrinkly and they are STILL DELICIOUS!

So after reading about how amazing they are, why aren’t they readily available?

Many orchards (including ourselves) pulled out their crops years ago, after the variety became increasingly difficult to sell to retailers, coupled with the fact they can be difficult to grow and handle without the fruit developing russet, marks on their skin, and easily bruising!

We have recently (a couple of years ago now) grafted a few rows of trees back over to Golden Delicious, as we have the community’s support buying them directly from us! We do not have to rely on what’s ‘trendy’ or what retailers will buy anymore – we can grow the things our own customers and community want!

Thanks for supporting us, we are so happy to have these available for you and we hope you enjoy them!

Pink Lady & Granny Smith Apples will be coming early April.

Glenbernie Orchard’s AppleShack is open daily 10am-4.30pm. Visit www.darkes.com.au