Bhutlah

Sweet and fruity with floral, earthy, and smoky notes; the intense heat arrives quickly.

Bhutlah is a Capsicum chinense hybrid of Bhut Jolokia × 7 Pot Douglah. Pods are elongated to teardrop-shaped, 5–8 cm long, with heavily wrinkled/bumpy skin that ripens from green to red or deep chocolate brown. Plants are vigorous and tall (often 90–150 cm), productive under warm conditions. Flavor starts sweet, fruity, floral and earthy with smoky notes before rapid, intense heat. Used almost exclusively for extreme hot sauces, powders, and sparing additions to cooked dishes. Variants include the original red and more widely known chocolate forms.

Developed in the early 2010s by Wisconsin grower Chad Soleski as an unintentional cross of Bhut Jolokia and 7 Pot Douglah. The name “Bhutlah” was coined by his friend Steve McLaurin. The original pods were red. The labels “Red Bhutlah”, “Bhutlah Red”, and “Bhutlah OG” were applied later simply to distinguish the original red form from the subsequent chocolate-brown and other color selections of the same hybrid. The strain remains semi-stable with phenotypic variation across red and brown types.

How hot is Bhutlah?

Capsi’s sourced range is 580,000 SHU (Referenced). Capsi uses a sourced range and a trust tier, not a single marketing number. How we verify heat: https://web.thecapsi.app/learn/heat-and-capsaicin/how-we-measure-heat

What does Bhutlah taste like?

Sweet and fruity with floral, earthy, and smoky notes; the intense heat arrives quickly.

How do I grow Bhutlah?

Bhutlah: about 110 days to maturity, subtropical climate, full sun, hardiness zones 9-11.

What can I substitute for Bhutlah?

Carolina Reaper, Trinidad Scorpion, 7 Pot Douglah, Komodo Dragon