Chili Pepper News — scoville scale peppers

The Scoville Scale is a measure of the pungency (spicy heat) of chili peppers and other spicy foods. Developed in 1912 by American pharmacist Wilbur Scoville, the scale was created to quantify the heat level of various peppers in a standardized way. But what prompted the creation of this scale, and how has it evolved over the years? Let's dive into the history and significance of the Scoville Scale.

If you’ve ever wandered through the grocery store considering the different chilies or hot sauces, you’ve likely noticed designations along the lines of mild, medium, or hot. (That is until you get to the super hot sauces which are more likely to carry warnings of “too damned hot for you” or “you’ll die if you try.”) But what on earth does mild, medium, or hot really mean? What are you supposed to tell the server when they enquire whether you want your curry mild, medium, or hot? Surely all that practice you have consuming chilies Stateside means you can handle...

Thinking about the first tests to determine the heat of chili peppers, it’s far too easy to think of Wilbur Scoville as a little bit out of his mind. After all, humans are terrible at gauging… well, anything. Given a crime scene, every witness will see something different. And, it’s damned difficult to agree on specific color – so much so that there are color reference guides printed to assist designers and the like.