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

Frank Garcia of GNS Spices, in Walnut, California, is credited with being the developer of the Red Savina habanero. While the exact method Garcia used to select the hottest strains is unclear, it has been tested and certified in 1994 as the "World's hottest spice" and is listed in the Guinness World Records.

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

Samples of Red Savina have been measured as high as 580,000 Scoville units. For comparison, that is twice as hot as regular Habanero chile (100,000–350,000 Scoville units), and 65 times as hot as Jalapeno pepper. A Cayenne pepper rates only 30,000–50,000 Scoville units.

Recently the Red Savina chilli was reported to be displaced as the hottest chili in the world by the Naga Dorset pepper, though the Guinness World Records still lists the Red Savina as world's hottest spice.

See also

• Naga Dorset pepper is a new cultivar that is reportedly hotter than Red Savina.
• Naga Jolokia pepper is another cultivar that is reportedly hotter than Red Savina.
• Scoville scale compares the spiciness of various other peppers.

References