Sharp · 5 trees planted · confidence high
A red-fleshed Wolf River x Malus niedzwetzkyana cross, large with dark red russet-netted skin and firm crimson flesh. The juice is tart, aromatic and astringent - too sharp to eat but valued by cidermakers for the ruby colour and tart-dry structure it contributes. Grown as a colour and acid component rather than a base variety.
Disease: Resistant to fireblight and very resistant to apple scab; exceptionally cold hardy (zones 3-7). Distinctive red wood and pink blossoms.
Discrepancies: Bloom: Cummins assigns bloom group 3, but several independent nurseries describe Redfield as one of the first apples to bloom each year, which would be group 1-2. Recommended 3 because it is an explicit rating on a defined scale, but plant on the assumption of early bloom and frost exposure until confirmed. Harvest: Cummins gives roughly November 3 in NY while other catalogs say September-October; recommended a late-October framing that spans both. Class: Cummins classifies it Sharp while several nurseries call the resulting cider bittersweet; recommended SH, since the astringency comes largely from anthocyanins rather than the tannin the English classes measure. Absent from the WSU database - no PNW trial data.