An old-world Yugoslavian heirloom paste tomato with a remarkable immigrant story and sauce-making supremacy.
 
Vigorous indeterminate vines easily reach 6–7 feet (sometimes more), producing heavy clusters of 4–6 massive, elongated red fruits—often 4–8 inches long and 7–14 oz each. These smooth, pepper-shaped giants have incredibly thick walls, almost no seed cavities, and very low water content, cooking down lightning-fast into the thickest, richest sauce you’ll ever make from fresh tomatoes. Flavor is intensely sweet, deep, and complex with virtually no acidity—superb fresh in salads or roasted, but truly legendary for canning, paste, and ketchup.
 
Plants show excellent disease resistance and, set reliably in heat, and display strong tolerance to blossom-end rot even in tough seasons. Give them full sun, consistent early moisture, and the strongest stakes or cages you’ve got—they’re worth the real estate.
 
HISTORY: This heirloom traces back to pre-WWII Yugoslavia (now Croatia or surrounding regions). Julia Pentz smuggled seeds to the U.S. upon immigrating in the 1940s and shared them with her brother, Anton Fessler, who arrived in 1951. Anton passed them to Michele Abbattista in 1960. In 1980, Ohio seed saver Bill Roemer received stock from Michele and spent decades selecting for the largest, earliest fruits, renaming it "Abbattista" in honor of the family. It's now preserved by groups like Seed Savers Exchange and sold by specialty heirloom vendors (e.g., Bounty Hunter Seeds, Renaissance Farms, Michigan Heirlooms). A true immigrant story, it's gained cult status in tomato enthusiast circles for outperforming classics like San Marzano in size and flavor.
 
 
Sold in a 3.5" pot.