Starkspur® Winesap Apple Tree

Starkspur® Winesap is a Stark Bro’s exclusive improvement on one of America’s oldest and most beloved apple varieties — originating from Oroville, Washington in 1969 with enhanced early-bearing spur-type production that gets heavy crops of the iconic spicy, tart, wine-like flavored Winesap going sooner than standard Winesap trees. The deep red, medium-sized fruit with firm, crisp, richly flavored flesh is one of the finest cider, cooking, and long-storage apples available — holding its quality in storage well past Christmas for home orchardists who plan their succession plantings carefully. Mid-October ripening in Zones 5–8.

Spicy, Tart, Wine-Like Flavor — A Completely Distinctive Apple Character

The Winesap flavor is unlike any other apple variety — assertively tart, richly spicy, and complex with the wine-like aromatic quality that earned the name generations ago. It’s not a flavor for growers who prefer sweet, mild apples — it’s the apple for those who want genuine character and complexity, and it delivers that character with outstanding consistency at mid-October harvest and throughout its exceptional storage season. Outstanding for cider, hard cider blending, cooking, and fresh eating for palates that prefer a bold, assertive apple.

Spur-Type Improvement — Earlier Bearing, Heavier Production

The Starkspur® improvement over standard Winesap is in the spur-bearing habit and earlier bearing age — producing heavy crops sooner after planting and from a more compact, manageable tree than standard Winesap varieties. For home orchardists who want the classic Winesap character without the longer wait, that earlier production is a meaningful practical advantage.

Oroville, Washington, 1969 — One of America’s Great Keeper Apples

Winesap’s long storage quality is legendary — one of the reasons it was so widely planted in American home orchards before modern refrigeration made storage less critical. Starkspur® Winesap carries that tradition forward with a variety that holds its quality well beyond the typical apple storage window, rewarding patient growers with excellent eating quality from October through the holiday season and beyond.

Why Growers Choose Starkspur® Winesap

• A Stark Bro’s exclusive — only available from Stark Bro’s
• Spicy, tart, wine-like flavor — the most distinctively flavored apple in the catalog
• Spur-type improvement — earlier bearing than standard Winesap
• Outstanding for cider, cooking, and long storage — holds quality well past Christmas
• Oroville, Washington, 1969 — Stark Bro’s improvement on a classic American variety
• Triploid — requires two other pollinator varieties — plan the planting accordingly

Note: Triploid; cannot pollinate other apple trees.