The Golden Russet (and its older brother the Roxbury Russet) is the other of the two heirloom apples that I will drive miles for every November. This photo was taken in Vermont's Lake Champlain Valley, but I know I can also get them closer to home, usually at the C.N. Smith Farm in East Bridgewater, MA, and often at Noquochoke Orchards in Westport, MA.
The Golden Russet is not a pretty apple. It is named for the potato-like scabrous russetting on the peel, and it is not a big apple, so you must peel more of them for your pie. It has a rather golden flesh, and it turns brown soon after it is cut.
But the flavor is excellent, strong, and spicy. It responds well to cinnamon and butter. And the slices hold their shape exceptionally well, so they add structure to the pie filling and help to keep the rest of the pie from turning into a sodden mush.
The Roxbury Russet is the oldest known apple cultivar in America, dating from 1640s Boston. Since Lorna's maternal 10-greats-grandfather and his brother were colonist apple farmers from Kent, England, we like to think it was found on their farm, but of course we have no proof for this bit of locavore culinary folklore. The Roxbury Russet has all the favorable qualities of its golden sister, but it is much harder to find.