YAKIMA -- The names can be quirky, sublime or romantic. SweeTango, Pinata, Jazz, Aurora, Honeycrisp, Opal, Sweetie, Pacific Rose and Ambrosia.
They are among the most recent apple varieties vying for the attention of consumers and retailers with the hope of bringing growers more money.
Ever since the introduction to Washington of Granny Smith in the 1960s, followed more recently by Fuji, Gala, Braeburn, Jonagold and others to expand the apple market beyond Red and Golden Delicious, the search has been on for new apples that emphasize taste.
"We have to stay current and we have to be consumer-driven," said Jim Hazen, business manager for Prescott-based Broetje Orchards, which is handling Sweetie and Opal.
Along with the new apples come new marketing strategies.
Establishing trademarked names and licensing agreements for the new varieties can limit production and target distribution, which can mean higher prices and better quality control. In theory, the more exclusive the availability, the greater the cachet and the higher the price. Some newer varieties, for example, are selling at more than twice the price of the old standards, such as Red Delicious.
The trend, which began several years ago when the Pink Lady variety was trademarked, represents a significant change in the industry.
The days of so-called new open varieties -- such as Red and Golden Delicious, which could be purchased and grown by orchardists without restriction -- now appear to be numbered.
The Honeycrisp, which was trademarked following its development by the University of Minnesota breeding program, shows what a new variety can mean. Since its patent expired two years ago, more acres of Honeycrisp have been planted and the variety's popularity and return to growers are touted as a success story.
This marketing season, the average price for a 40-pound box of Honeycrisp exceeds $47. By comparison, Red Delicious, the industry mainstay for years, is averaging less than $18 per box in limited shipments of fruit from the 2010 crop.
While the price is high, the Honeycrisp variety is difficult to grow and is more susceptible to problems that limit how many are ultimately shipped to market.
Other new varieties are in such limited quantities and are being marketed by individual shippers that price information is not available.
Another University of Minnesota apple variety, SweeTango, is being handled as a managed variety, meaning production is limited. The name is trademarked and the university has licensed the variety to a select group of growers, including some in Washington.
But some disgruntled Minnesota growers, not included in the licensing deal, are suing.
Stemilt Growers of Wenatchee trademarked the name Pinata and has exclusive rights to grow and market the variety in the U.S.
The variety was developed in Germany and released throughout Europe in 1986, according to information from Stemilt. Less than 100,000 boxes of Pinata made their way to market through June.
"It becomes a method for all of us to have a special variety to capture a premium that has controlled amounts of volume so it isn't overplanted and supports a higher dollar figure," said Roger Pepperl, marketing director for Stemilt.
Certainly, that is what retailers are looking for. Desmond O'Rourke, a retired Washington State University agricultural economist who now operates Belrose Inc., which analyzes the world apple market, said retailers want to be the exclusive provider to set them apart from their competitors.
"Retailers are looking for new varieties. In this latest phase, retailers are looking for an apple that is special to them," he said.
Another common trait among these new varieties is they originated someplace else.
But that, too, is changing.
Washington has its own new variety. Technically, the variety, known as WA 2, was developed by WSU breeder Bruce Barritt in conjunction with the Washington State Tree Fruit Research Commission.
