11. ABATE FETEL

March 2024

Fruit - Pear

Variety - Abate Fetel

Location - Hotel Bergkristall, South Tyrol, Italy

Bought from - Gogl Max Obst & Gemuse Spezialitaten, a wonderful Italian delicatessen in Brenner, located on the borders of Italy and Austria

Cost - £6.70/kg

Grown - South Africa. These pears are grown in Italy too, but the harvest has been poor in recent years due to climactic conditions (in 2024, the Italian harvest experienced a 50% shortfall), so suppliers have had to rely on imports from overseas.

Description - Like the tarocco gallo oranges that I bought from this delicatessen, these pears caught my eye with their shiny wrapper! Peeling back the wrapper, the pear had greenish-brown skin, giving them a russet look. Abate Fetel pears can sometimes develop a subtle red blush too.

I bought this pear on a Sunday – it was ready to eat by Thursday. Smelling the fruit, I noticed that it wasn’t very aromatic, and I could say the same about the flesh.

Although the soft, grainy flesh was pleasant to eat, it didn’t have the floral, perfumed taste of other pear varieties. The flavour was pretty subdued, with notes of bitterness standing out the most!

Pleasant to eat but not the best.

Storage – Ripen at room temperature. To maintain freshness, store in refrigeration once ripe.

Rating - 6/10. I would buy them again if there wasn’t much choice available, but they’re definitely not the best pears out there. Although, I have had good Abate Fetel pears in the past, so don’t write them off!

Available from My Exotic Fruit?

They won’t be available online, but you will be able to buy them from our new shop, The Greengrocer! The Greengrocer will always have a range of fantastic pear varieties, however the varieties will change weekly. Please call the shop on 01277 809810 to find out what’s in stock.

Do we sell Florida Pearl strawberry seeds and seedlings?

Not at the moment.

Do you have something interesting to tell us about Abate Fetel pears, or any other fruit that we sell? 

We'd love to hear from you! Email us on blog@myexoticfruit.com and, with your permission, we'll add your information to our website.