Northern Spy

American  

noun

1. an American variety of red-striped apple that ripens in autumn or early winter.

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Etymology

Origin of Northern Spy

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50

Example Sentences

Each pack comes with four teeny and tiny apple pies that are made exclusively for TJ’s in Canada using Northern Spy apples.

From Salon • Nov. 26, 2025

We sipped glasses of his flagship dry cider made with Baldwin, Jonagold and Northern Spy apples for a drink that’s pleasingly yeasty and fresh, and the color of early-fall sunshine.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 10, 2025

Heirloom cider apples, like a Kingston Black or a Northern Spy, have different levels of sugar, malic acid, and tannins.

From Slate • Aug. 24, 2016

The band plays two sets beginning at 7 p.m. at Sugarcube, the pop-up space at South Street Seaport, courtesy of the Brooklyn avant-garde label Northern Spy.

From New York Times • Jan. 29, 2015

Some of the more vigorous varieties, like Northern Spy for instance, do not submit kindly to such treatment.

From Dwarf Fruit Trees Their propagation, pruning, and general management, adapted to the United States and Canada by Waugh, F. A.