Appearance – dark red coloring with a few lighter streaks, just over 3”H, very round and hefty, pale yellowish flesh.
Taste – Crisp is definitely the word for this apple! This is a hard apple, a bit difficult to cut into, and the crunch is really satisfying. It’s also really juicy and *very* acidic. It’s a sweet apple but not by much, however the flavor is kind of bland. Personally, I think this is a really good replacement for the Red Delicious. They’re both pleasing to look at, and the Cosmic Crisp has a super long shelf life. Bonus points for not having the bitterness that the RD skin has, plus it doesn't brown much at all. I had mine out for over 10 minutes and the flesh was still bright.
Online sources say this is a cross between the Honeycrisp and the Enterprise (There’s an apple called the Enterprise? Seriously? How have I never heard of that one before!?!) and the growers have poured tons of money into marketing this apple. I’m not sold on the flavor (personal preference) but it is a worthy replacement for the god-awful RD.