Olympic

Variety with winter-ripening fruit. Obtained at VNIISPK by sowing seeds of the McIntosh variety from open pollination in 1960. Breeders: E. N. Sedov, N. G. Krasova, M. V. Mihayeva. The variety was accepted for State Testing in 1979 and included in the State Register of Selection Achievements approved for use in the Nizhnevolsky region in 1999.

Trees of medium size with medium-dense, rounded crowns. Main branches curved, departing from the trunk at nearly straight angles. Branch tips directed upward. Bark on trunk and main branches smooth, gray. Predominant fruit formation types — simple and complex rings, short and long fruit spurs.

Shoots are curved, angular in cross-section, brownish-brown, hairy. Buds numerous, small. Buds pressed, medium-sized, conical, hairy. Leaves egg-shaped, short-pointed, with spirally twisted tips, green, wrinkled, shiny, with coarse veins. Leaf margin finely toothed, wavy. Petiole hairy, with anthocyanin coloration. Stipules small, lanceolate. Fruit buds hairy, large, elongated.

Flowers medium-sized, dish-shaped, buds rose-colored with purple tint, petals elongated, light-pink, loosely closed, stigma at the level of stamens.

Fruits medium-sized and uniform, bulbous, weakly ribbed. Skin rough, dry, dull. Main color greenish. Cover color — as merging stripes of brownish-red on most of the fruit. Peduncle short, thick, curved. Calyx small, wide, without rusting. Receptacle small, narrow, ridged. Calyx closed. Heart large, bulbous. Chambers medium-sized, open. Subcalyx tube medium length and width, bowl-shaped. Seeds medium-sized, egg-shaped, brown.

Flesh greenish, medium density, tender, juicy, pleasantly sweet-tart flavor with subtle aroma. Visually rated at 4.3 points, flavor rated at 4.2 points. According to biochemical laboratory analyses at VNIISPK, fruits contain: sugars — 10.2%, titratable acids — 0.53%, ascorbic acid — 16.0 mg/100g, P-active substances — 316 mg/100g, pectic substances — 11.4%.

Harvesting ripeness occurs in the second half of September.

Fruits can be stored until mid-February.

The variety is early-bearing and matches the early-bearing qualities of 'Pepin Shafran'. In terms of yield, it surpasses 'Pepin Shafran' — 172 c/ha and 144 c/ha respectively. The variety is sufficiently winter-hardy in Central Russia. During the severe snowless winter of 1968-1969, when soil temperature at 20 cm depth dropped to -16ºC and at 40 cm depth — to -12ºC, the mother tree showed slight overall freezing (1.0 point), whereas 'Pepin Shafran' trees on Chinese pear rootstocks froze to 2.0 points. Moderate resistance to fruit and leaf scab.

Advantages of the variety: early bearing, high yield, high commercial and consumer fruit quality.

Disadvantages of the variety: low resistance to scab, loose flesh.