This chilli is so hot, you'd have to drink 250,000 gallons of water just to put out the fire

The Telegraph (UK) ^ | 5/8/05 | James Langton

[saquin]

"We live in an extreme world," explains Blair Lazar, a hot sauce creator. "And I make extreme foods.' In his hands is the hottest spice in the world, an ultra-refined version of chilli powder so fiery that customers must sign a waiver absolving him of any liability if they are foolish enough to try it.

Locked in a crystal flask sealed with wax and a tiny skull, Mr Lazar's mouth-blistering concoction is pure capsaicin - the chemical that lends habanero and jalapeno peppers their thermo nuclear heat.

Blair Lazar: to taste his sauce is to experience ‘pure heat’ His "16 Million Reserve", which is released to the public this week, is the holy grail of hot sauces, the hottest that chemistry can create.

It is 30 times hotter than the spiciest pepper, the Red Savina from Mexico, and 8,000 times stronger than Tabasco sauce. To put the tiniest speck on the tip of your tongue is to experience "pure heat", Mr Lazar says.

Although capsaicin does not actually burn - it fools your brain into thinking that you are in pain by stimulating nerve endings in your mouth - some medical experts believe that it could kill an asthmatic or hospitalise a user who touched his eyes or other sensitive parts of the anatomy.

Mr Lazar has trained his palate to endure the sensation, but he remembers the moment he dared to taste his "16 Million Reserve".

"The pain was exquisite," he said. "It was like having your tongue hit with a hammer. Man, it hurt. My tongue swelled up and it hurt like hell for days."

The eye-watering qualities of peppers are measured in internationally recognised Scoville units, developed by Wilbur Scoville, an American chemist who, in 1912, asked tasters to evaluate how many parts of sugar water it took to neutralise capsaicin heat.

Today, capsaicin content is measured in parts per million, using a process known as high-performance liquid chromatography; one part being equivalent to 15 Scoville units. Benign bell peppers rate zero Scoville units and the Red Savina entered Guinness World Records at 570,000 units.

Pure capsaicin, meanwhile, has a heat score of 16 million units - inspiring the name for Mr Lazar's latest creation. Each of the 999 limited-edition bottles, priced at $199 (£105), contains just a few crystals. The powder is so strong, however, that Mr Lazar estimates that it would have to be dissolved in 250,000 gallons of water before it could no longer be tasted.

His career as a hot sauce creator began when he found that the best way to clear drunks out of his seaside bar was to give them free chicken wings dipped in an eye-watering home-made hot sauce.

Now he runs Extreme Foods in New Jersey, selling his existing range, including "Mega Death" and "Jersey Death", the latter, according to Mr Lazar, being the world's hottest usable condiment.

He keeps a fridge full of iced spring water in his office for those brave enough to try some. Most tasters sweat heavily and are unable to see for tears for up to half an hour.

It takes several tons of fresh peppers to produce 1lb of capsaicin for the 16 Million Reserve, and the work takes months. First, moisture is removed from the fresh peppers until a thick tar-like substance remains.

The means by which all further impurities are eliminated, leaving pure capsaicin powder, is a trade secret, but the work takes place in a laboratory where Mr Lazar and his team wear sealed suits with masks to avoid inhaling the dust.

Five years ago Mr Lazar created "2am Reserve" in honour of the hour at which he once closed his bar. It was hotter than any other chilli product on the market, measuring up to 900,000 Scoville units.

He then distilled even stronger chilli extracts, including the scorching "6am Reserve" at 10 million units. Most of the signed and numbered bottles of "16 Million Reserve" will be bought by aficionados known as chilli heads.

Buyers have to sign a disclaimer warning that any handling "must be under a controlled environment using protective gloves and safety eye wear".

"It shouldn't be used for flavour," says Mr Lazar. "The only function is its heat value." He prefers not to speculate on what might happen should anyone be foolish enough to down an entire bottle. Rinsing the mouth with milk is among the best remedies as the capsaicin binds to fat molecules; it will also dissolve in alcohol.

Internet sites such as the hot sauce weblog and sweatnspice.com have been abuzz with talk about this week's release, with many collectors planning to buy at least two bottles - one to display and the other to try.

But one chilli head who obtained an early sample dropped a single grain into a pan of tomato soup. After persuading his wife to try a spoonful, he reported that: "She threatened divorce once she could speak again.''

Blair Lazar: to taste his sauce is to experience ‘pure heat’

[zzen01]

Waterm does NOT put out a chili fire, MILK does!

[singletrack]

"His career as a hot sauce creator began when he found that the best way to clear drunks out of his seaside bar was to give them free chicken wings dipped in an eye-watering home-made hot sauce."



Oh yeah, free wings will really chase drunks out of a bar. "Get me away from that tasty cold beer". More free food? Thats it , I'm going home to my wife."

[meatloaf]

That might even work on Grizzlies.

[kylaka]

Actually, crackers put out the fire better by absorbing as much moisture from the mouth as possible. Moisture of any kind just spreads the fire.

[BIGLOOK]

Your Texas location tells me you've some sense about the chili pepper. Noted you look for flavor.

When I want heat I pick serranos. Good flavor too. Jalapenos are good for topping off a taco ar a chilidog. Good chopped in a burrito too. For the taste of a really good chili pepper, I seek out poblanos or their dried form, anchos. Great for stuffing. I stuff Anaheims too, but got to add hot sauce.

Over here people make chili pepper water with salt and the little bird pepper. A little heat but not much flavor.

Tabasco is good with creole/cajun fare which I like but it doesn't cut it with Tex/Mex or South American.

Cubans use the habanero or Scotch Bonnet. Probably 'cause Fidel's markets have no food other than rice and beans. All heat so any flavor is lost. I don't know why people are obsessed with eating something so fiery hot they can't taste it. Except for one; my brother in NY. He's nuts.

[Fzob]

"The pain was exquisite," he said. "It was like having your tongue hit with a hammer. Man, it hurt. My tongue swelled up and it hurt like hell for days."

That makes as much sense as holding your fingers over a flame until the flesh starts to peel back. It seems the older I get the stupider people get.

[Uncle Fud]

Dave's Insanity Salsa is pretty good on chips. You do have to let the chip "drain" back into the jar before eating though - don't ever load it up.

[engrpat]

I like Dave's, good stuff. My daughter got me a small of something called "instant death" or something like that. Well heck I'm tough, sure I sprinkled it on my taco and ate like I had good sense. About 2 minutes after I started eating I knew that death had just entered the room and was calling. I like hot stuff but I could not talk, my eyes watered to the point I couldn't see, forget breathing. I learned to follow instruction on the bottles.

[Chewbacca]

Wow. Mix that with some water and put it in a squirt gun and you have a awsome non-lethal weapon.

[BansheeBill]

The worst thing is accidentally rubbing your eye when you have hot sauce on your fingers. A friend of mine did that at a restaurant years ago, and spent 20 minutes in the bathroom flushing his eye with water.

You also would not want to touch an areas with "sensitive skin". (Don't ask me how I know this).

[Atchafalaya]

I plant 5 tabasco plants in my garden every year and pick all (red) starting in Sept.(putting them in the freezer so I can do them all at one time) through the first freeze which kills the top. I puree the peppers, boil for 15 mins in a vinegar/vinegar/water/salt mixture and can in pint jars. A little bit goes a long way; great to pique a roast, 1/2 a pint to a sack of crawfish, a teaspoon or tablespoon in a marinade, add a tablespoon to a jar of Cajun Injector(Reese, can you hear me?), the list is endless. Tabasco's just take to vinegar so well and taste so good. Make a gallon jar of pickled eggs, with 3 or 4 onions sliced in it and 1/2 cup of whole tabasco's dropped in. Let sit for 2 weeks. Get a napkin, an egg, onion slices, ... and 2 tabasco's. Take a a bite of the egg, take a bite of a tabasco, taste of onion, more tabasco, sip of liquid (whatever you like), a taste of tabasco (rub your forehead-damp?), egg, onion,... add more eggs! Tabasco peppers just taste good. Rub your game (squirrels, rabbits, ducks, venison, etc.) in the chow chow, great. Used it on some yellowfin I grilled, great.
We like our food seasoned here in La., but heat just for heats sake makes no sense. Who would want to ruin any of the wonderful cookables we have down here with pure heat. Just a little bite on the front, middle and back of the tongue; tabasco's for me. Cayenne's, well that is another story.

[CaptRon]

We used to be the world leader in technology...

[WorkingClassFilth]

I'm thinking a nice, hot-oil body rub with a bonus medicinal hot-oil enema for Islamic guests of the U.S. military.

[Peace will be here soon]

I have some of that in my frig !!

I went to a Mexican restuarant and asked for some hot sauce. They first gave me some kind of house blend which was nothing I cared for (the wimpy stuff they give the regular folks I guess ). I asked again for something with "a bit more kick" and this is what they gave me. I loved it !! I asked to take the bottle home after dinner and they said no problem.

Funny thing was they warned me it was very hot and seemed concerend about even giving the sauce to me at first. But after a quick taste test, I just shook my head and smiled. They eased up after that. : )

[Cobra64]

Attention to repeat rape offenders:

A 10cc catheter injection.

[quantim]

Click to be added or removed

Palate neutralizing clandestine wine ping.  Of course we know the secret.  ...who doesn't know?

[humblegunner]

"The pain was exquisite," he said. "It was like having your tongue hit with a hammer. Man, it hurt. My tongue swelled up and it hurt like hell for days."

We need some of this stuff ping.

[VRWC For Truth]

Agree. El Yucateco is the best.

[CygnusTheSwan]

"The pain was exquisite," he said.
Paging all masochists!

I use this scale:
Heat/Pain Level 1 : Sweating
Heat/Pain Level 2: Sweating and Watery Eyes

and my favorite

Heat/Pain Level 3: Sweating, Watery Eyes, and Ringing Ears

It doesn't get any better when your ears start ringing!

[spinestein]

[Scientists have long speculated that plants produce secondary metabolites, chemicals that are not required for the primary life support of the plant. These metabolites fight off animal predators and perhaps even competing plant species. Nee speculates that the capsaicin in chiles may be such a metabolite. It prevents animals from eating the chiles, so that they can be consumed by fruit-eating birds who specialize in red fruits with small seeds. Mammals perceive a burning sensation from capsaicin but birds do not. The seeds pass through the birds' digestive tract intact and encased in a perfect natural fertilizer.]


That's the theory for other substances like nicotine and caffeine, and many plants target the noxious effect to specific animals.

I grow hops for home-brewing (the bitter oils in the hop cones are an essential flavor ingredient in beer) and I've noticed that many insects will try to eat the hops but once they get close to the bitter substance, they stop.

For good or bad, humans have very sophisticated biological mechanisms for dealing with substances that are noxious to other animals.