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Kingston Black
type: Cider
synonyms: Black Taunton
summary: This is possibly the best-known apple today for making a single-varietal, British-style cider.
identification: Medium size tending to small and squat-conic, often irregular shape. Skin colour is green/yellow covered three quarters or more with a dark red wash with darker stripes. The shaded face is either yellow or orange and marked with dark stripes. Russet lenticels and sometimes a russet patch at the base. The stem is short and somewhat stout and set in a deep, funnel-shaped cavity. The calyx is small and closed, set in a shallow, wide, funnel-shaped basin.
characteristics: Flesh is yellowish and often stained reddish close to the skin. Fine-grained, tender. Abundant, full-bodied, red-amber juice which is sweet and sharp with a rich, fruity flavour and a tannic aftertaste.
uses: A bittersharp English cider apple. Considered vintage quality.
origins: According to British pomologist Robert Hogg in the 1881 edition of "The Apple and Pear as Vintage Fruits" the Kingston Black was raised at Kingstone near Taunton in Somerset (U.K.), but he cautions that there is "no authentic record of its origin." Nevertheless, it is thought to have emerged in the early 1800s, possibly as an open-pollinated seedling of Cap of Liberty . Apparently, a Ross-area nurseryman by the name of Thomas Reynold traded scion wood of this variety in the 1820s.
cultivation: Moderately vigorous, upright spreading spur bearer. Medium height on its own roots. Very slow to start producing. Crops are generally on the light side, with random off-years. Requires regular pruning.
cold storage: The apples should be used after a 10-day sweating period since they lose flavours and quality quickly thereafter, becoming somewhat flat.
vulnerabilities: Susceptible to canker and scab.
harvest: Toward the middle of the fifth period.
juice character: Rated as a single-variety cider apple. Presses out to a golden-amber juice, full bodied and nutty, lemony and butterscotch flavours. Very aromatic. Tannin level is 0.19% and malic acid measures out at about 0.58%
juice_classification: Sharp
pollination group: E
pollination peak: 17
ploidism: Partly self fertile, but does better with a suitable source of pollen nearby. Tolerates Hardiness Zones 4 to 8.
brix: 13
acidity: 5.6
harvest period: 5
hardiness: 4
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