Sweet Sixteen is a great choice for northern climates: it is cold hardy to zone 3 and somewhat resistant to fireblight, scab, and cedar-apple rust. The tree has a vigorous, upright habit that is generally easy to manage, and it is a reliable annual cropper.

This apple is one of our favorites in the U-pick orchard. Over the years it has steadily acquired a loyal following as more and more of our customers fall in love with the unique flavor of Sweet Sixteen. While Honeycrisp wins for texture, I would say that Sweet Sixteen is the most remarkable of the modern apples in terms of flavor. The apple is medium-large, blushed and striped rose-red, and speckled with pale lenticels. The flesh is crisp and distinctly yellow, almost golden. Although it has enough acid in it to be well balanced, attempts to describe the flavor of Sweet Sixteen almost always resort to comparisons from the candy aisle. Sweet Sixteen tastes like bubblegum and cherry Life Savers say some tasters. We say it tastes like raspberry Twizzlers. The sweetness is "showy," and needless to say, children love this apple. While it stores passably for about six weeks, Sweet Sixteen is best eaten fresh off the tree.

A cross of Northern Spy and MN 447 (open-pollinated Malinda), Sweet Sixteen gets its cold hardiness from both parents. It was developed by the famed and talented plant breeder W. H. Alderman, who once wrote "Science may accelerate natural cycles to some extent, but breeding, selecting, and testing new fruits is not a job for the impatient." Given that Sweet Sixteen was released in 1974 and is only now starting to gain recognition, truer words could not have been said.