It was a thrill to see and pick the Bramley apples on the tree this year. About seven years ago I asked Jonathan Banks from his Pialligo orchard where I could buy a Bramley apple tree. He asked if I had an old apple tree (which we could use as stock), on which he could graft some of his Brambly cuttings. With his expertise, we were able to graft a Bramley with great success.
Grafting is performed when a tree is dormant. You select a healthy shoot of the previous season’s growth of the desired variety in early winter. Then keep it wrapped in plastic wrap in the fridge to keep it dormant until early spring. Just before bud burst it is then grafted on to the trunk and root system of the stock.
Grafting is the best way to grow an apple that is true to the tree or fruit you like. Seeds, as someone said, are like children from the same parents, they can vary a lot.
The original Bramley tree is in still alive and is Southall, Nottinghamshire in England. It was planted from a pip by a young girl, Mary Ann Brailsford in 1808. One of the first clones produced by the University of Nottingham now flourishes along side the original tree.
I remember seeing a tree in Goulburn, in a small garden with one massive trunk, and it had as many as eight different varities of apples grafted and ripening at different times. Makes a lot of sense if you do not have a lot of space in your back yard and saves on storage in the coolroom.
There are several methods of grafting and the best book to read on the topic is Louis Glowinski’s book “The Complete Book of Fruit Growing in Australia”.
Bramley apples are a green, large, flat-round cooking apple. The flesh is white, juicy and acidic, with low sugar levels, resulting in a stronger, tangier tasting apple that retains a strong apple flavour when cooked. When boiled, the Bramley turns into a frothy pulp, giving it a moist, "melt in the mouth" texture, making it the ideal cooking apple.
Although the Bramley is not commonly retailed in Australia, (and I do not know why), it is the most important cooking apple in England. I am sure you could find young trees from Heritage nurseries in Victoria or South Australia or better still, learn to graft.
Bramleys work well in pies, so I have included Simon Hopkinson’s recipe for Bramley Apple Pie from his book “Week Inn Week Out “.
Bramley Apple Pie
800-900 Bramley apples, peeled, cored and sliced
5 cloves
juice of a small lemon
175g caster sugar (25g of which is used to sprinkle over pastry top after brushing with milk)
1 tbsp corn flour
375g puff pastry
a little milk
Preheat oven to 180C together with a flat baking sheet. Mix the apples with the cloves, lemon juice, 150g of the sugar and the corn flour. Set aside. Lightly grease the tin with butter. Roll out two thirds of the pastry to line the tin (don’t make it too thin), allowing for a slight excess to flop over the rim.
Tip in the apples - which might look too many but be assured, they will flop down as they cook - and lightly press them down with your hands. Now brush a little milk around the edge of the pastry, roll out the remaining one-third of pastry, but to a slightly thinner degree than the base.
Carefully drape it over apples and, with your fingers, lightly press the two pastry edges together. Then, with a sharp knife, cut through the jointed edges almost flush up to the rim, knock up the pastry join to form a crinkled edge all the way around and decorate with the tines of a folk. Brush the surface with more milk and evenly sprinkle with the remaining caster sugar. Make 3-4 incisions in the centre of the pastry lid to allow the steam to escape.
Place the pie on the baking sheet and cook for 20 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 150C and continue to cook for a further 35-40 minutes, or until the pie crust is well stippled with semi-caramelised sugar crystals and that there is clear evidence of burbling, golden apple juices erupting from within the pie, both through the central vents and around the edges too. Mind you it is the intoxicating small, above all, that tells you the thing is ready. Leave to cool to luke-warm before un-moulding. Clotted cream is lovely with this.