Ukraine: Eccentric
This is a Ukrainian seedless apple, also known as Chudaachka.
The fruit are well-coloured, as in the picture; slightly elongated, and unusual in that they usually contain no seeds; the seed cavities are there, but are empty.
The apple flavour is gentle and fruity, with higher flavour notes than Matrioska; however the texture is disconcertingly soft. In our apple tastings it has received ratings as far apart as 5/5 and 2/5. A number of our tasters associate 'soft' with 'over-ripe'; not the case here.
The variety is not generally available in the UK.
Blossoming is about a week later than Bramley. The flowers are easily missed because they have no petals. The tree needs no pollination by bees; it sets fruit anyway as long as the weather is OK. The flowers swell and gradually become fruit.
I tested a freshly picked apple for vitamin C content: 2.8 mg per 100g fruit. This is quite low.
Pictures (click on small images for detail):
Blossom
Fruit
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