Karmijn de Sonnaville was raised by Piet de Sonnaville, an apple enthusiast who had prevoiusly worked at the well-respected horticultural research school of the University of Wageningen in the Netherlands. Starting in 1949 he created numerous crosses, primarily using Cox and Jonathan, along with many others.
Karmijn de Sonnaville is his most well-known creation, a Cox-style variety, but with a distinctly more pronounced aromatic flavor.