Thanks, Clare. Mine had no protection whatsoever. This was a cold winter with 32 nights of frost and one night down to about 22F from the best I can guess (my thermometer read 25F but a local station reported 18F). However, the cold was mostly due to the drought and lack of cloud cover and many of our nights with frost were followed from very pleasant days. All of the leaves were fried but it is re-growing from the top. My last Ae Ae died this winter as well as a few others, so this variety is a "winner" for me. I honestly didn't expect it to survive but both the main plant and the small pup are alive.
That's what I understood about the fruit as well and just was wanting confirmation from you. Good luck this year!