Red Savina pepper

Red Savina
A Red Savina habanero, at near-optimum ripeness. Note characteristic deep red color.
Details
Species	Capsicum chinense
Cultivar	'Red Savina'
Origin	California, United States

Red Savina pepper

Heat	Exceptionally Hot (SR: 248,556[1])

The Red Savina pepper is a cultivar of the habanero chili (Capsicum chinense Jacquin), which has been selectively bred to produce hotter, heavier, and larger fruit.

Frank Garcia of GNS Spices, in Walnut, California, is credited with being the developer of the Red Savina habanero. The exact method Garcia used to select the hottest strains is not publicly known.

The Red Savina is protected by the U.S. Plant Variety Protection Act (PVP #9200255).^[2]

In February 2007, the Red Savina chili was displaced in Guinness World Records as the hottest chili in the world by the Naga Jolokia pepper. The Red Savina held the record from 1994 until 2006.^[3]

Red Savina peppers were reported to a score up to 577,000 on the Scoville scale, but this oft-quoted figure was never verified^[1]; a comparison experiment carried out by a group of researchers including Regents Professor Paul W. Bosland at the Chile Pepper Institute at New Mexico State University in 2005 revealed an average heat level of 248,556 SHUs for Red Savina habaneros, compared to 357,729 SHUs for Orange Habaneros and 1,001,304 SHUs for Bhut Jolokia peppers.^[1]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} DeWitt, Dave; Bosland, Paul W. (2009). The Complete Chile Pepper Book. ISBN 978-0-88192-920-1. 
2. ^ "Plant Variety Protection Number: 9200255 (Red Savina)". U.S. Department of Agriculture. 1992-08-26. http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/showpvp.pl?pvpno=9200255. Retrieved 2009-11-11. 
3. ^ "World's hottest chile pepper discovered". American Society for Horticultural Science. http://www.bio-medicine.org/biology-news-1/Worlds-hottest-chile-pepper-discovered-991-1/. Retrieved 2008-03-31.