Albemarle Pippin Apple

The Albemarle, or Newtown, Pippin was one of Thomas Jefferson's two favorite apples, the other being 'Esopus Spitzenburg.'

As many as fifty Albemarle Pippin trees were planted in the South Orchard at Monticello between 1769 and 1814. The variety originated in Newton, New York, in the eighteenth century, and is sometimes known as 'Newtown Pippen' for that reason. Benjamin Franklin reputedly introduced the variety into England as an example of a superior American fruit variety. In the nineteenth century, Queen Victoria fancied the fruit so much as to exempt Virginia-grown apples from an import tax.

The fruit ripens in late autumn as the skin turns an olive green color. The flesh is greenish-white, juicy, crisp, and with a fine aroma.

In Bloom at Monticello is made possible by support from The Richard D. and Carolyn W. Jacques Foundation.