I was all set to order scion from Nick Botner but now I need to do something else (well maybe not NEED). I found Packham's Triumph pears at a local health food store and I must say the skin was quite bitter and the flesh not at all smooth. They also had Starkrimson and that was far and away a better pear.

I've been spending way too much time looking at reviews of pears and had come up with a few that I thought were the best: Ubileen, Belle Lucrative, Onward, Devoe, Dana Hovey, and Packham's Triumph.

Now that I tasted Packham's Triumph, grown in Argentina, I am worried that I may be disappointed with it or others that are, "curators favorites" or rated highly by the NCGR in Corvallis.

Is this just the typical fruit thing that happens when a fruit is not picked at it's prime for reasons of shipping, etc.?

Since I have a good European dessert pear, Red Clapp's, and I don't seem to have any fire blight issues, I want a pear that can be stored. It seems that Dana Hovey would be good but I am seriously looking at Onward, which I found a source for.

Is there any pear officianodo that has a few of these that can give me their opinion?

I also have to admit I had a Bartlett I actually liked for the first time today. Trader Joe's is bringing in some organic small ones that actually taste good. I never had thought much of Bartlett before.

My fav's in American grocery stores have been Seckel and Comice. And Magness in an orchard. Standard winners for me. Scott recommends Fondante des Moulins-Lille for its precociousness plus taste combo. If it's good enough for Scott, it's good enough for me!

I agree Magness beats all others, but it is hard to get a crop. Supposedly it is hard to pollinate properly.

Fondante des Moulins-Lille has been the most reliable for me and is also easy to ripen and tastes excellent. Some pears can be really hard to ripen properly, you need to pick them in a certain window which is hard to recognize because the fruits are still green and hard. Too early and they never ripen, too late and they rot from the inside out. FdML has a very wide picking window so I always get lots of good fruit from it. The nursery descriptions never seem to touch on this topic. One reason why Seckel is such a common pear in the US is it is very easy to ripen.

Scott

You make a very good point about getting a consistent crop. I am also looking for something that will store fairly well. I was thinking that Dana Hovey would be good for a winter pear. I think you have both. Would you consider Fondante des Moulins-Lille to store well?

I don't know why but every time I read about Belle Lucrative it really sounds like a good one also. All of these seem to ripen at the same time.

Scott

PS See the link below for a great reference on some of the classic pears.

Bartlett sure is user friendly in terms of ripening and storage, and is an excellent pear. I think with a new name that was a little more poetic it would be more highly regarded!!

:-)M

Anyone else have experience with how well Fondante des Moulins-Lille will keep?

Other suggestions?

Comice is supposed to be outstanding, although my tree hasn't started to bear yet.