Piñata has a crisp, juicy bite, but what really gets people excited is its noticeable yet balanced sweet and tart taste and long-lasting pineapple finish.

Its heirloom parentage makes it one of the best apples for baking (it won’t break down in the heat), but you can’t go wrong with this as a snack or added to a green salad.

The story of Piñata apples, however, starts in the 1970’s. Researchers in Dresden-Pillnitz, Germany were doing some apple work. They crossed 3 varieties of apples: Golden Delicious, Cox’s Orange Pippin and the Duchess of Oldenburg. The result: One awesome apple which couldn’t be kept a secret. It was finally released in Europe in 1986, under the names “Pinova” and “Sonata”. It was a hit, and in 2004 Stemilt became the exclusive growers of the apples, later combining the words and naming them “piñata” apples