Stemilt Participates In University of Minnesota Inauguration

Stemilt Grower’s Rave was one of the many highlights recently on the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities campus Friday, as the school celebrated the inauguration of Joan T.A. Gabel as the first female president in the school’s 168 year history.  To celebrate, Stemilt donated 4,000 Rave apples, and handed them out during the celebration.

Rave, the MN55 cultivar, actually got its start thanks to University of Minnesota researcher David Bedford back in 1997.  Stemilt was given the rights to grow Rave in North American in 2014 and introduced the Honeycrisp-MonArk cross to the market place in 2017.  Stemilt is winding down on its third Rave apple season.  The apple typically ripens and harvests in late July.

“It was an honor for our signature apple, Rave, to be part of this historic celebration in Minnesota,” said Brianna Shales, senior marketing manager at Stemilt. “President Gabel wanted a casual event and healthy foods to be served at her inauguration. We were thrilled to be invited to share the University’s newest hit apple, Rave, with attendees.”

“If any college community knows its apples, it’s those who attend the University of Minnesota,” said Shales. “Their famed apple breeding program includes both Honeycrisp and SweeTango as success stories. Rave certainly had big names to live up to, but we were blown away by the familiarity and sheer excitement people had for our outrageously juicy new apple.”

“It was a big year for Rave apples with our largest crop yet and so much excitement at retail,” said Shales. “We took it on the road for the #RaveRoadTrip in late August and will wrap the season with this historic inauguration event. Most importantly, we were able to give more consumers their first taste of Rave® and something to rave about as we all eagerly await next year’s crop.”

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