"When I was young, people who wanted to earn extra money went apple picking. It is a tiring job, especially if you work with traditional jute sacks, as they used to do. They would be filled with apples, about 30 kilograms, and then they would be emptied into the big boxes." Now technology has modernized the technique and the safety for workers, with the harvesting wagon the work is definitely less tiring and less dangerous. It works like a charm."
Maria Kohl, the mother of Thomas, whom we meet in the apple orchard after our conversation with her son, also says this. A life with apples. She is happy to pass on her knowledge and experience to new pickers.
There are summer varieties and fall varieties. Summer ones are harvested from August to early September, and being the shorter ripening period, they have a milder taste.
The time for autumn ones, on the other hand, is from September to November, depending on weather conditions. Some stay on the tree three months longer than their summer "sisters" and as a result will have a more aromatic taste. They develop more complex flavors with crisp flesh.
Of course, there are exceptions and one in particular is the Gravensteiner, with early ripening but extraordinarily aromatic. Everything is always a matter of genetics.
"In 2022 we started the Gravensteiner harvest in early August, a full ten days earlier than in previous years. A very hot summer with little rainfall led to this early harvest."
Our hit parade. In order of ripeness: Gravensteiner, Rouge, Elstar, Ananasrenette, Rubinette, Pinova and Jonagold. In mid-November, when snow is already whitening the Schlern massif, our work does not stop and we conclude the harvest with Wintercalville. One variety after another ripens beautifully. Continuous work in the apple orchard, going from picking directly to processing the fruit. Single-varietal. This is how we create our Mountain Apple Juices.
"Once one variety is finished, we often go straight to the next. Or there is a short break, depending on the level of ripeness of the fruit. Harvest time is challenging, exciting, thrilling. It is the conclusion, before the new beginning, of a year of work, the result of which is the juices that will arrive in your homes, you will find in your trusted restaurant, store, bar, bakery."
Manual harvesting is extremely important to us. It allows us to understand and decide immediately whether a fruit is ready for processing into apple juice. Delicacy in picking the apple from the tree is crucial. Dark spots caused by insensitivity alter the color of the juice, cause it to oxidize and reduce its quality.