White Must
Apple
WHITE MUST
Origin & History
An old variety, mentioned by John Evelyn as "A great bearer, and its cider early ripe." The 18th-century pomologist Philips praised it highly:
"But how with equal Numbers shall we match / The Musk's surpassing Worth! that earliest gives / Sure hopes of racy Wine, and in its Youth, / Its tender Nonage, loads the spreading Boughs / With large and juicy Offspring, that defies / The Vernal Nippings, and cold Syderal Blasts!"
The variety is also known as White Musk.
Tree
Not described in source.
Fruit
Form and Size: Roundish or oblate; even and regular in outline.
Skin: Smooth and shining, of a uniform pale straw color, which is a little deeper where more exposed to light.
Eye and Basin: Small and open, set in a narrow and rather deep basin. Basin is round and smooth. Calyx segments divergent; tube short conical; stamens basal.
Stalk and Cavity: Short stalk, almost entirely within the cavity. From the cavity issues a ramifying patch of rough, scaly brown russet extending over the base.
Flesh: Yellowish, very tender, juicy, and pleasantly subacid.
Core: Cells closed; cell-walls obovate.
Post-Harvest Characteristics: After being gathered, the skin becomes quite unctuous and gives off a powerful ethereal odor.
Chemical Composition
Analysis from the 1878 season:
- Density of fresh juice: 1.037
- Density after 24 hours' exposure to air: 1.040
- Per 100 parts weight of juice:
- Sugar: 8.030
- Tannin, Mucilage, Salts, &c.: 3.580
- Water: 88.390
Season
Not described in source.
Uses
A cider apple. The White Must produces a deep-colored, sweet, and pleasant cider; however, it has no great strength and will not keep long.
Current Status
The White Must still retains its useful qualities and is largely grown throughout the cider counties of England.
Subtypes & Variants
Not described in source.
Book Sources
Described in 1 period pomological work
View original book sources (1)
— Woolhope Naturalists Field Club, The Herefordshire Pomona (1885)
- WHITE MUST.
[Syn : White Musk.]
This Apple is a very old variety. It is mentioned by Evelyn as "A great bearer, and its cider early ripe,"—and Philips says of it:—
"But how with equal Numbers shall we match The Musk's surpassing Worth ! that earliest gives Sure hopes of racy Wine, and in its Youth, Its tender Nonage, loads the spreading Boughs With large and juicy Offspring, that defies The Vernal Nippings, and cold Syderal Blasts !"
Description.—Fruit, roundish or oblate ; even and regular in its outline. Skin, smooth and shining, of an uniform pale straw colour, which is a little deeper where it is more exposed to the light. Eye, small and open, set in a narrow and rather deep basin, which is round and smooth ; segments, divergent ; tube, short conical ; stamens, basal. Stalk, short, and almost entirely within the cavity, and from which issues a ramifying patch of rough scaly brown russet, extending over the base. Flesh, yellowish, very tender, juicy, and pleasantly subacid. Cells of the core, closed ; cell-walls, obovate. This is a pretty apple, and, after being gathered, its skin becomes quite unctuous, and it gives off a powerful ethereal odour.
Mr. With's analysis, season 1878, gives these results :— Density of fresh juice ... ... ... 1·037 Ditto after 24 hours' exposure to air ... 1·040 100 parts of weight of juice contained : Sugar ... ... ... ... 8·030 Tannin, Mucilage, Salts, &c. ... ... 3·580 Water ... ... ... ... 88·390
The White Must apple still retains its useful qualities, and is largely grown in all the cider counties of England. It produces a deep-coloured, sweet, and pleasant cider ; but it has no great strength, and will not keep long.