Golden Greek Pepperonchini

Tania · August 31, 2014

I have 17 Golden Greek Pepperonchini plants growing in cold frame, seeds from a reputable commercial seed vendor purchased in 2011.

Most of the plants are ripening fruits, and they are bright red, large elongated peppers, and they are sweet.

One plant is producing smaller cylindrical fruits, ripening to orange. I have not tasted them yet to determine the heat level.

I am assuming the orange one is correct, and the rest are wrong. But I am not sure. Google search brings pictures with red fruit, and descriptions that says it ripens from green to yellow and then to red (mine go from green to red, no yellow phase), and they say it is mildly hot. Perhaps I am not detecting mild heat, LOL. They appear to be sweet to me! Mine also look larger than what I thought they should be, but it is hard to size up peppers based on the pics on the web.

If you have grown this variety, what is the fruit color?

Here are the pic of the red ones from our garden -

http://tatianastomatobase.com/w/imag...17_%284%29.JPG

http://tatianastomatobase.com/w/imag...2014-08-14.JPG

this is a green stage:
http://tatianastomatobase.com/w/imag...2014-07-08.JPG

Thanks,
Tatiana

Tania · August 31, 2014

ginger2778 · August 31, 2014

Tania, they are almost too pretty to eat. I hope someone can tell you if they look right. Do you have any photos of the orange one?

Tracydr · September 1, 2014

Are they sweet or hot? Maybe a cross? I grow Hungarian Wax for pickling. You always see them as pale yellow but they turn a lovely orange color when ripe.

bower · September 1, 2014

Tania, I've grown "Golden Greek Pepperoncini" and like yours, they were dark green at first and ripened to red without any yellow or 'golden' stage, and the shape as shown.. Ours were a little bitter at the green stage, pretty strong tasting, and were a bit hot towards the stem end, but not throughout. They ripened unevenly and kind of late. There may have been a few that were not hot, but most of them were, so overall they made great pickles. My seed source for these was Tradewinds Fruit. Mine were not as big as yours, but probably due to growing conditions.

I was a bit disappointed that they weren't 'golden' or at least pale green instead of dark. My Italian Pepperoncini (sourced from West Coast Seeds) is a lovely pale green before ripening and has no bitter at the green stage, and an even mild heat throughout.. It looks a lot like your Sigaretta de Bergamo (?) but not quite as long and elegant.

I grew another pepperoncini last year called "Toscano Sweet". It looked very much like the 'Golden Greek' shape, dark green pepper ripening to red, but was not hot at all.

Tania · September 2, 2014

The red ones are sweet. No heat detected.

I still have not tasted the orange ones. Will do in the next couple of days. And I will take pictures.

It did not occur to me to try them at green stage, so I have no idea how they taste green.

Thank you for your responses for far!

Cheers,
Tatiana

Tracydr · September 3, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tania

The red ones are sweet. No heat detected.

I still have not tasted the orange ones. Will do in the next couple of days. And I will take pictures.

It did not occur to me to try them at green stage, so I have no idea how they taste green.

Thank you for your responses for far!

Cheers,
Tatiana

I've had extremely hot peppers that then turn completely sweet with no spice in the winter, especially if it rains. Have you had a hot dry summer or cool and wet?
I've had jalapeños so hot that we can't even eat them and we eat very hot peppers everyday.
I'll be curious to see how my same pepper varieties in NC.

Tania · September 5, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tracydr

I've had extremely hot peppers that then turn completely sweet with no spice in the winter, especially if it rains. Have you had a hot dry summer or cool and wet?
I've had jalapeños so hot that we can't even eat them and we eat very hot peppers everyday.
I'll be curious to see how my same pepper varieties in NC.

Hi Tracy,

Our summer has been exceptionally hot and dry, so I'd expected the maximum heat from all the hot peppers this season.

Tasted the second batch of the reds, there is no heat.

having said that, I can eat cayenne peppers fresh, so perhaps I am not detecting the mild heat? Possibly

Cheers,
Tatiana

lakelady · September 2, 2014

Tania the ones you buy in the store are actually unripe I believe and pickled as such before completely ripening. I've grown a few varieties and only one looked like the ones in pickle jars lol. I think in Italy and Greece a lot of peppers are called pepperoncini but are not the ones Americans commonly think of as the pickled in jars that we love.

Tania · September 2, 2014

Yeah, I know they use unripe peppers for pickling.

WHat puzzles me is that I am not sure why it is called 'Golden Greek' if peppers are never 'golden' - they are either green or red.

Are other 'pepperonchini' varieties mature to red?

bower · September 3, 2014

My 'Italian Pepperoncini' also matures to red.

I hope you find a 'Golden Greek' out there that's deserving of the name.

PNW_D · September 3, 2014

Tania, this rang some bells and I checked my seed stash - not sure of your source but Botanical Interests refers to the yellow colour - I do have seed from them packed for 2011 ...... let me know if you'd like some

https://botanicalinterests.com/produ...HEIRLOOM-Seeds

Tania · September 5, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by PNW_D

Tania, this rang some bells and I check my seed stash - not sure of your source but Botanical Interests refers to the yellow colour - I do have seed from them packed for 2011 ...... let me know if you'd like some

https://botanicalinterests.com/produ...HEIRLOOM-Seeds

D., thank you! Have you grown it yet?

Mine are from a different vendor.

Let me pass on the offer for now (but I can change my mind later, when I start planning my 2015 pepper growout).

Tracydr · September 5, 2014

Tanya-I'd be willing to bet that you wouldn't eat cayennes raw if they developed in AZ heat.
Our jalapeños were too spicy to use more than one in a huge batch of chile at times. Even our poblanos could get crazy hot.
I just bought jalapeños and anaheims from the store here in NC. They taste sweet and not at all spicy. I had to add a habanero to increase the heat of my salsa and green chile. Usually, the anaheims in AZ can be uncomfortably spicy in the summer. And,we love really hot food. I've been known to chop serranos and habanero for raw dishes, particularly with eggs or salad!

Ken B · September 7, 2014

Nikos with Fedco Seeds thinks that the Golden Greek seed that's most commonly available has been messed up by wholesalers somewhere along the way...

I hope we'll get around to doing a pepperoncini trial someday, would love to find a variety that does well here in Virginia.

August 31, 2014	#1
Tania Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Anmore, BC, Canada Posts: 3,970	Golden Greek Pepperonchini I have 17 Golden Greek Pepperonchini plants growing in cold frame, seeds from a reputable commercial seed vendor purchased in 2011. Most of the plants are ripening fruits, and they are bright red, large elongated peppers, and they are sweet. One plant is producing smaller cylindrical fruits, ripening to orange. I have not tasted them yet to determine the heat level. I am assuming the orange one is correct, and the rest are wrong. But I am not sure. Google search brings pictures with red fruit, and descriptions that says it ripens from green to yellow and then to red (mine go from green to red, no yellow phase), and they say it is mildly hot. Perhaps I am not detecting mild heat, LOL. They appear to be sweet to me! Mine also look larger than what I thought they should be, but it is hard to size up peppers based on the pics on the web. If you have grown this variety, what is the fruit color? Here are the pic of the red ones from our garden - http://tatianastomatobase.com/w/imag...17_%284%29.JPG http://tatianastomatobase.com/w/imag...2014-08-14.JPG this is a green stage: http://tatianastomatobase.com/w/imag...2014-07-08.JPG Thanks, Tatiana __________________ Tatiana's TOMATObase

August 31, 2014	#2
Tania Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Anmore, BC, Canada Posts: 3,970	__________________ Tatiana's TOMATObase

September 2, 2014	#6
Tania Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Anmore, BC, Canada Posts: 3,970	The red ones are sweet. No heat detected. I still have not tasted the orange ones. Will do in the next couple of days. And I will take pictures. It did not occur to me to try them at green stage, so I have no idea how they taste green. Thank you for your responses for far! Cheers, Tatiana __________________ Tatiana's TOMATObase

September 2, 2014	#9
lakelady Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: northern NJ zone 6b Posts: 1,862	Tania the ones you buy in the store are actually unripe I believe and pickled as such before completely ripening. I've grown a few varieties and only one looked like the ones in pickle jars lol. I think in Italy and Greece a lot of peppers are called pepperoncini but are not the ones Americans commonly think of as the pickled in jars that we love. __________________ Antoniette

September 2, 2014	#10
Tania Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Anmore, BC, Canada Posts: 3,970	Yeah, I know they use unripe peppers for pickling. WHat puzzles me is that I am not sure why it is called 'Golden Greek' if peppers are never 'golden' - they are either green or red. Are other 'pepperonchini' varieties mature to red? __________________ Tatiana's TOMATObase

August 31, 2014	#3
ginger2778 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Plantation, Florida zone 10 Posts: 9,283	Tania, they are almost too pretty to eat. I hope someone can tell you if they look right. Do you have any photos of the orange one?

September 1, 2014	#4
Tracydr Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2011 Location: Laurinburg, North Carolina, zone 7 Posts: 3,207	Are they sweet or hot? Maybe a cross? I grow Hungarian Wax for pickling. You always see them as pale yellow but they turn a lovely orange color when ripe.

September 1, 2014	#5
bower Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Newfoundland, Canada Posts: 6,794	Tania, I've grown "Golden Greek Pepperoncini" and like yours, they were dark green at first and ripened to red without any yellow or 'golden' stage, and the shape as shown.. Ours were a little bitter at the green stage, pretty strong tasting, and were a bit hot towards the stem end, but not throughout. They ripened unevenly and kind of late. There may have been a few that were not hot, but most of them were, so overall they made great pickles. My seed source for these was Tradewinds Fruit. Mine were not as big as yours, but probably due to growing conditions. I was a bit disappointed that they weren't 'golden' or at least pale green instead of dark. My Italian Pepperoncini (sourced from West Coast Seeds) is a lovely pale green before ripening and has no bitter at the green stage, and an even mild heat throughout.. It looks a lot like your Sigaretta de Bergamo (?) but not quite as long and elegant. I grew another pepperoncini last year called "Toscano Sweet". It looked very much like the 'Golden Greek' shape, dark green pepper ripening to red, but was not hot at all.

September 3, 2014	#11
bower Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Newfoundland, Canada Posts: 6,794	My 'Italian Pepperoncini' also matures to red. I hope you find a 'Golden Greek' out there that's deserving of the name.

September 3, 2014	#12
PNW_D Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: West Coast, Canada Posts: 961	Tania, this rang some bells and I checked my seed stash - not sure of your source but Botanical Interests refers to the yellow colour - I do have seed from them packed for 2011 ...... let me know if you'd like some https://botanicalinterests.com/produ...HEIRLOOM-Seeds __________________ D. Last edited by PNW_D; September 5, 2014 at 06:41 PM.

September 5, 2014	#14
Tracydr Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2011 Location: Laurinburg, North Carolina, zone 7 Posts: 3,207	Tanya-I'd be willing to bet that you wouldn't eat cayennes raw if they developed in AZ heat. Our jalapeños were too spicy to use more than one in a huge batch of chile at times. Even our poblanos could get crazy hot. I just bought jalapeños and anaheims from the store here in NC. They taste sweet and not at all spicy. I had to add a habanero to increase the heat of my salsa and green chile. Usually, the anaheims in AZ can be uncomfortably spicy in the summer. And,we love really hot food. I've been known to chop serranos and habanero for raw dishes, particularly with eggs or salad!

September 7, 2014	#15
Ken B Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: central Virginia Posts: 243	Nikos with Fedco Seeds thinks that the Golden Greek seed that's most commonly available has been messed up by wholesalers somewhere along the way... I hope we'll get around to doing a pepperoncini trial someday, would love to find a variety that does well here in Virginia.