Varietal characteristics

The Madernassa pear is a traditional variety from Piedmont, named after the small hamlet of Madernassa in the municipality of Vezza d’Alba, just a few kilometres from the town of Alba, in the heart of the Langhe and at the gateway to the Roero area. It is here, near the Prunotto Mariangela farm, that this variety found ideal conditions to thrive.
The mother plant of the Madernassa, grown at the Gavello farmhouse, was felled in 1914 when it had already reached an age of around 130 years, with a trunk circumference of 2.60 metres and a yield exceeding 25 quintals. It is believed that this cultivar derives from a natural cross between the Martin Sec variety and a wild pear tree, from which it inherited its robustness and rustic character.
The Madernassa pear is deeply rooted in the gastronomic tradition of the Roero area, especially during the autumn and winter months. The tree is vigorous, hardy and highly productive, although in older orchards it may be subject to alternate bearing. It flowers in the mid-early season and has the distinctive characteristic of being a parthenocarpic variety, meaning it can produce fruit even without seeds.