{{Short description|Super Hot chili pepper}} {{Use British English|date=December 2023}} {{Infobox cultivar | name = Armageddon | image = | breeder = Salvatore Genovese | origin = UK | species = Landrace hybrid | hybrid = ''Capsicum chinense'' × ''Capsicum frutescens'' | module = {{Infobox pepper | embed = yes | heat = Exceptionally hot | scoville = 1,300,000 }} }}
The '''Armageddon chili pepper''' is a chili pepper variety of ''C. chinense''. The variety was created by Tozer Seeds<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.seedworld.com/us/2019/07/30/tozer-seeds-releases-first-british-bred-hybrid-super-hot-chili/ |title=Tozer Seeds Releases First British Bred Hybrid Super-Hot Chili |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=30 July 2019 |website=SeedWorld |access-date=15 October 2024}}</ref> and first grown by Salvatore Genovese.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fruitnet.com/fresh-produce-journal/new-chillis-launched-by-bedfordshire-firestarter/182306.article |title=New chillis launched by Bedfordshire firestarter |last=Leahy |first=Ed |date=8 July 2020 |website=Fresh Produce Journal |access-date=15 October 2024 |quote=Last year Genovese created a new record by growing the Armageddon variety, which at 1.3m Scovilles is the hottest British-bred commercially grown chilli pepper.}}</ref> The Armageddon pepper was introduced to the UK market in 2019. The pepper holds a rating of 1.3 million SHU (Scoville Heating Units).
==Development and distribution== Armageddon is a ''C. Chinense'' and one of the ‘Super Hot’ chilies,<ref name="modfarm">{{cite web | url= https://modernfarmer.com/2013/04/growing-pain/| title=Growing Pain: Chilihead fanatics are locked in a race to cultivate the world's hottest pepper.| last=Anderson| first=Lessley| date=April 3, 2013| website=Modern Farmer| language=en-US| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827191830/http://modernfarmer.com/2013/04/growing-pain/| archive-date=August 27, 2017| url-status=live| access-date=August 14, 2019}}</ref> the fruity-flavored pepper was cultivated to be a quick growing, high yielding and easily harvested pepper, making it a leading candidate for the growing of 'Super Hots' at scale. In 2019, the first commercial grower of the Armageddon promoted it as "...the hottest commercially grown chili in the UK..." although the heat level was well below the then Guinness World Records individual pepper heat leaders, the Naga Viper, Trinidad Scorpion Butch T pepper, and the Carolina Reaper.<ref name="armaChile" />
==Appearance and pungency== The Armageddon plant spreads to an average width of 1.5 feet, and grows to an average height of 2.5 feet. One plant will produce fruits up to 2" long, that require up to 75 days to reach maturity, much quicker than that of the Carolina Reaper. The Armageddon pepper has been classified as 'Exceptionally Hot', and is rated on the Scoville heat scale{{efn|The Scoville scale measures the capsaicin content in a hot pepper.<ref name="kenb">[https://foodanddine.com/the-taste-bud-kevin-ingests-an-armageddon-pepper-and-shares-his-pain/ ''The Taste Bud : Kevin ingests an Armageddon pepper and shares his pain'']; Food and Dine; accessed December 2023</ref>}} at 1.3 million units, which is about 400 times hotter than the typical jalapeño pepper rating.<ref name="armaChile">{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20201127122047/https://thechilliexpert.com/is-the-armageddon-chilli-the-hottest-pepper-in-the-world/ ''Is the Armageddon Chili Pepper the Hottest Pepper in the World?'']}}; article; The Chili Expert online; thechilliexpert.com; accessed December 2023</ref><ref name="brpee">[https://www.bobvila.com/articles/burpee-seeds-armageddon-pepper/ ''Burpee's New ‘Armageddon’ Pepper is Only for the Bravest of Vegetable Gardeners'']; Stallsmith, Audrey; Updated Mar 11, 2021; online article; Bob Vila Home Advice Website; retrieved December 2023</ref>
==See also== * Hottest chili pepper
==Notes== {{Notelist|35em}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fx1O-SGefCM ''GMB Crew Try the Armageddon''], Good Morning Britain segment on the Armageddon pepper
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Category:Chili peppers Category:Capsicum cultivars