Aurora Golden Gala™ Apples
Estimated Inventory, 38 lbs : 0
Description/Taste
Aurora Golden Gala™ apples vary in size, depending on growing conditions, but are generally 7.7 to 8.3 centimeters in diameter with a round, conic, or slightly lopsided shape. The fruits have flat, broad shoulders tapering to a narrow base. Most Aurora Golden Gala™ apples range from 265 to 288 grams in weight in retail markets and feature faint ribbing and some lenticels scattered across the surface, resembling tiny dots. The apple’s stem cavity is also occasionally filled with textured, grey-brown russet, and the green-brown stem can be left long or cut short. Aurora Golden Gala™ apples have thin, easily damaged skin and ripen from yellow-green to golden yellow. The variety has smooth, taut, and glossy skin, and based on its growing environment, climates with cooler nights and sunny days develop a faint red blush on the fruit’s exterior. A waxy layer also develops with ripening, and the skin becomes duller over time. Underneath the surface, the pale-yellow flesh is firm, medium-grained, dense, and crisp with a breaking, succulent consistency. The flesh also encases a central core filled with tiny black-brown seeds. Aurora Golden Gala™ apples are edible raw and emit a fragrant aroma with maturity. The variety is known for having a mild, fresh, sweet, and tart flavor with subtle honeyed, tropical, floral nuances.
Seasons/Availability
Aurora Golden Gala™ apples are harvested in the late summer through fall, typically between mid-September and mid to late October. Once picked, the fruits can be professionally stored and sold for six months.
Current Facts
Aurora Golden Gala™ apples, botanically classified as Malus domestica, are a Canadian variety belonging to the Rosaceae family. The mid-season cultivar produces golden-skinned fruits on trees reaching 4 to 6 meters in height and was commercially released in the early 21st century. Aurora Golden Gala™ apples are favored for their crisp, breaking flesh, pale coloring, and sweet taste. The variety is sometimes known under other names like Aurora Golden, Aurora, and 8S-69-23, but Aurora Golden Gala™ is the official commercial name used in retail markets. Despite their modern release, Aurora Golden Gala™ apples have delicate, easily bruised skin that can often be damaged in mechanical picking, transportation, and packaging. This has led to the variety being avoided by some members of the apple supply chain in Canada. Aurora Golden Gala™ is primarily cultivated by specialty growers and home gardeners. The variety is revered for its extended storage properties as a versatile apple, incorporated into fresh and cooked culinary dishes. The cultivar’s sweet, honeyed flesh is also valued as a dessert apple, and recently the variety has expanded in production to growers throughout the United States.
Nutritional Value
Aurora Golden Gala™ apples have not been studied for their nutritional properties. Yellow apples, in general, are sources of fiber to promote digestion and vitamins B, C, E, and K to aid in faster wound healing, strengthen the immune system, guard the cells against free radical damage, and contribute to energy production. Apples also provide varying amounts of minerals like copper, manganese, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, and iron. These minerals help the body build red blood cells, balance fluid levels, support bone and teeth health, produce proteins for oxygen transport through the bloodstream, and control daily nerve functions.
Applications
Aurora Golden Gala™ apples have a sweet, subtly tart flavor suited for fresh and cooked preparations. The variety is commonly eaten out of hand as a dessert cultivar and is enjoyed as a snack or light dessert, either plain or with dips and nut butter. Aurora Golden Gala™ apples can be sliced and served on cheese boards, shredded into slaws, or layered into sandwiches. They are also chopped into fruit medleys or used as a topping over parfaits and other breakfast dishes. It is recommended to sprinkle lemon juice on the apple’s flesh to help slow browning. In addition to raw preparations, Aurora Golden Gala™ apples hold their shape well in cooked dishes and are incorporated into various baked goods like crisps, crumbles, pies, and tarts. Try simmering the variety into apple butter, jams, jellies, and sauces. Aurora Golden Gala™ apples are also roasted with other root vegetables in savory recipes, cooked into gratins, or pureed and served with meat main dishes. Aurora Golden Gala™ apples pair well with spices such as cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger, herbs including parsley, mint, and basil, and cheeses like gouda, chevre, blue, and gruyere. Whole, unwashed Aurora Golden Gala™ apples will keep for a few days to weeks when stored in a cool, dry, and dark location, such as a cellar or the refrigerator’s crisper drawer.
Ethnic/Cultural Info
Aurora Golden Gala™ apples were given their name from a contest held by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, a department of the Government of Canada. The internet-based “Name the Apple Contest” was held nationwide and allowed participants to suggest a marketing name for the apple variety 8S-69-23. Over 11,006 entries were submitted, and entries came from every province and territory in Canada. It is said that entries varied from naming the apple after loved ones and pets to suggesting the variety be named after well-known Prime Ministers. The winning entry, Aurora Golden Gala, was submitted by Daphne Biggs of Ottawa, Ontario. It is said that the apple’s yellow hue reminded Daphne of the aurora borealis, a natural light display seen in the sky in high-latitude regions. This phenomenon commonly occurs in Canada and connects the apple with its Canadian heritage. The name Aurora Golden Gala™ was chosen as the winning name and is used in commercial markets as the primary descriptor for the apple.
Geography/History
Aurora Golden Gala™ apples were developed through the Pacific Agri-Food Research Center in Summerland, British Columbia. The variety was bred by D. Lane and R. MacDonald in 1981 from a cross between Splendour apples, the seed parent, and Gala apples, the pollen parent. Seedlings from this cross were budded onto rootstock in 1984, and one seedling was eventually selected for its favorable characteristics and labeled 8S-69-23. This seedling was propagated for additional testing in 1990 and was evaluated and trialed for over ten years. In 1996, 8S-69-23 was sent to advanced testing at the Okanagan Plant Improvement Company and was valued as a new yellow apple with a pleasing flavor and crunch. 8S-69-23 apples were branded under the name Aurora Golden Gala™ and were commercially released in 2003. Since their debut, Aurora Golden Gala™ apples have been a specialty variety grown as a unique, yellow-skinned dessert cultivar. The variety is not widely grown commercially due to its delicate skin and is primarily found through farmers’ markets and select wholesalers and retailers in Canada and the United States.
Recipe Ideas
Recipes that include Aurora Golden Gala™ Apples. One
is easiest, three is harder.| Kitchen Treaty |
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Autumn Fruit Salad with Cinnamon Greek Yogurt Dressing |
| Wonky Wonderful |
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Apple Walnut Salad |
Aurora Golden Gala™ Apples for sale around the world shared on the Specialty Produce App
