The History of the Bramley Apple
A £50m industry created by chance
In 1809, an eighteen-year-old Mary Ann Brailsford planted the pips of an apple she was eating in the grounds of her garden in Southwell, Nottinghamshire. Two hundred years later, these lowly pips are responsible for a £50m apple empire. Ironically Mary Ann Brailsford would never have known this, as she died aged 61 in 1852, ten years before the first Bramley apple was sold.
But while the creation of the Bramley was all down to Mary Ann (and of course Mother Nature) the Bramley’s success in selling the apples did not come from the Brailsfords. In 1856, a butcher named Matthew Bramley bought the cottage and of course the apple tree, and received a visit from nurseryman Henry Merryweather, who asked if he could take cuttings from the tree and sell the apples it produced. Matthew agreed, but only if the apple was sold in his name. Six years later the first “Bramley” apple was sold.
But what makes the Bramley such a desirable fruit?
It is certainly very sour when eaten raw, but the beauty of the Bramley is in its cooking. When cooked, while other apples lose their flavour, the Bramley is still rich in its tart, intensely appley taste. It has a lower sugar level and a higher acid content than other apples, giving it its recognisable tang.
In texture too, cooking a normal eating apple can leave you with a slimey or even floury texture – but the Bramley holds its shape and becomes meltingly soft. The reason that Apple Crumble has become such a national institution is down to the combination of tender sweet and tart fruit underneath a topping of crumble so crunchy and also toffee like. A meltingly tender but chunky cooked apple is what is needed for this dessert to have its ultimate comfort food effect and the Bramley certainly does it proud.
Health Benefits of Bramley Apples
Healthwise, it is very good for you too. Bramleys contain antioxidants, vitamin C, fibre and potassium. A large Bramley apple contains 5.7g fibre – that’s the equivalent of two slices of wholemeal bread. A diet high in fibre is thought to reduce the risk of heart disease. An apple a day can certainly keep the doctor away.
Cooked apples have long been used as a cure for diarrhea, and the seventeenth century herbalist Nicholas Culpeper suggests their use, mixed with milk, to cure gunpowder burns. The vitamin A contained in these apples is essential for a healthy immune system. There is certainly much more to the humble apple than a mid morning snack.
The Bramley: not to be overlooked
Delia Smith once said that the Bramley apple is “as English as the apple pie”, and with its origins in a small cottage garden in nineteenth century Nottinghamshire she is right. It is the perfect addition to any dessert using cooked apples, such as crumbles, pies or even baked on its own with dried fruits. It can also be made into a sharp and tangy apple sauce to compliment the salty moistness of a roast pork.
At first glance, it looks like a rather large, clumsy apple and not like the shining perfectly-formed varieties also on offer at the supermarket. But the flavour and texture are perfectly suited to cooking. And the next time you tuck into your oozing Bramley apple crumble just think of the health benefits too. The Bramley is clearly not one to be overlooked, just as Mary Ann Brailsford didn’t overlook those pips in 1809.
Bramley Apples
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