Trinidad Scorpion Butch T pepper

Not to be confused with Trinidad Moruga scorpion.

The Trinidad Scorpion Butch T is a Capsicum chinense cultivar that is among the hottest peppers in the world.^[1] It is a hybrid pepper and thus not indigenous to anywhere; however, its hybrid parentage is derived from the Trinidad Moruga scorpion indigenous to Trinidad and Tobago.^[2] It was named by Neil Smith from The Hippy Seed Company,^[3] after he got the seeds originally from Butch Taylor (the owner of Zydeco Farms in Woodville/Crosby, Mississippi, and a hot sauce company) who is responsible for propagating the pepper's seeds.^[4] The "scorpion" peppers are referred to as such because the pointed end of the pepper is said to resemble a scorpion's stinger.

Trinidad Scorpion Pepper "Butch T"
Trinidad Scorpion pepper pods
Species	Capsicum chinense
Hybrid parentage	Trinidad scorpion
Breeder	Butch Taylor
Origin	Crosby, Mississippi
Heat	Exceptionally hot
Scoville scale	1,000,000 - 1,463,700 SHU

Sprouts

World record

The Trinidad scorpion 'Butch T' pepper was, for three years, ranked the most pungent ("hot") pepper in the world according to Guinness World Records.^[5][6] A laboratory test conducted in March 2011 measured a specimen at 1,463,700 Scoville heat units, officially ranking it the hottest pepper in the world at the time.^{[note 1]} One possible secret to the chili's heat, according to a cultivator of the pepper, is fertilizing the soil with the liquid runoff of a worm farm.^{[7][dubious – discuss]} In August 2013, Guinness World Records recognized the Carolina Reaper as the hottest pepper in the world, at 1,641,183 SHU.^[8]

See also

• Race to grow the hottest pepper
• Trinidad Moruga scorpion

Note

1. The pungency of a species of chili pepper can vary by up to a factor of 10 depending on the conditions under which the specimen grew.