Move over, roses, there’s another beautiful treat in the orchard! Rosalee® apples are a modern variety known for their beautiful red coloring, crisp texture and distinctive sweet, clean and floral flavor. Created from two popular apple varieties, Honeycrisp and Fuji, Rosalee brings together some of the qualities apple lovers already know and love while adding a flavor profile all its own. It’s a beautiful apple with a beautiful name, and it tastes just as lovely as it sounds.
Rosalee® is a modern apple variety developed through the Midwest Apple Improvement Association (MAIA). It is known as MAIA11 and comes from a cross between Honeycrisp and Fuji. That combination gives Rosalee an interesting family tree: Honeycrisp contributes to its famous crisp texture, while Fuji is known for its sweet flavor. The result is a distinctive apple with a clean, floral taste and spectacular texture.
Rosalee apples have a creamy yellow-green background covered with a dusty red to orange-red blush. The coloring gives the fruit a softer, almost rosy appearance, which is particularly fitting considering its name. Inside, the flesh is pale and crisp, with a juicy bite and a texture that MAIA describes as exceptional.
Rosalee is a sweet apple, but its flavor isn’t simply sugary. It has a clean, floral sweetness with a delicate complexity that makes it different from many traditional sweet apples. The texture is another major attraction. Rosalee is crisp, juicy and pleasantly tender, with a quality that MAIA famously describes as almost “melting” in your mouth. It’s a great choice if you enjoy apples that are sweet and refreshing rather than strongly tart.
Rosalee is a fall apple that generally ripens several weeks after Gala. At Apple Holler, Rosalee is typically ready around late October.
That makes it one of the varieties to watch for as the apple-picking season moves toward its later weeks. As always, exact harvest dates depend on weather and growing conditions, so check Apple Holler’s current availability before planning your visit specifically for Rosalee.
Rosalee is especially enjoyable fresh, but it can be used in plenty of different ways. Try it for:
Its sweet, floral flavor can add something special to simple recipes, while its crisp texture makes it excellent for eating right out of your hand.
Rosalee’s parents are Honeycrisp and Fuji, two apples that are already household names for many apple lovers. Honeycrisp is famous for its explosive crunch and juicy texture, while Fuji is prized for its sweetness and excellent keeping ability. Rosalee takes inspiration from both and turns those qualities into something new. It’s a great example of how apple breeders can combine desirable characteristics from different varieties to create new apples for the next generation of orchard lovers.
With its rosy coloring and elegant flavor, the name Rosalee feels right at home in the orchard. MAIA even describes the apple as being “as beautiful as a rose”, and the soft red blush certainly helps explain the comparison. Of course, the real beauty comes when you take a bite.
Rosalee is a beautiful apple to discover toward the later part of apple-picking season. Look for that dusty red-orange blush, pick one from the tree, and take a bite. Its sweetness, floral notes and crisp texture make it a fun variety to compare with more familiar apples like Honeycrisp and Fuji. And with a name as pretty as Rosalee, it’s practically asking to be picked!
Variety: MAIA11
Market Name: Rosalee®
Parentage: Honeycrisp × Fuji
Color: Dusty red-orange blush over yellow-green
Flavor: Sweet, clean and floral
Texture: Crisp, juicy and tender
Season: Fall, typically late October at Apple Holler
Best For: Fresh eating, salads, baking, sauces and snacking
