I have noticed the difference as well. Don't know the explanation, though. I find that some hit fast and then subside quickly, and others seem to build and build and last a while.

I have also noticed this although I haven't eaten any super hots. Maybe it has to do with the chemical make-up of the capsaicin itself, or other oils or juices that temporarily mask the heat? Those back-of-the-throat ones are really sneaky. It's like you taste just the sweetness first, then as you swallow, it's "uh-oh".

Great observation. There's definitley something to this. I grow all types of habs and andean types that are way hotter than Jalapenos. I eat everything very hot but when I bite into my home grown Jalapenos (mucho nacho this year, BikerBilly last year), I get stunned by the heat and hiccup for a bit. Mind you, I add Devil's tongue shavings to almost every meal to get it to my liking but these blasted Jalapenos always get to me.

Not sure if it's the species or the individual varieties because Thai chiles and cayenne which are also c.annuum give me no trouble at all. My wife is the same, she can handle very hot things but she says the homegrown Jalapenos are too painful.

I have also noticed this although I haven't eaten any super hots. Maybe it has to do with the chemical make-up of the capsaicin itself, or other oils or juices that temporarily mask the heat? Those back-of-the-throat ones are really sneaky. It's like you taste just the sweetness first, then as you swallow, it's "uh-oh".

This reminds me of a question I've been meaning to ask. Several years ago, I got a sinus infection that wouldn't respond to anything for months. But my sinuses could drain and get relief for hours if I hit the Chinese restaurant for a spicy meal. I'd also break a sweat even if it wasn't warm. And the spiciness wasn't too strong in my mouth.

Quite a few times since then, I've wished I could quickly get one or both - sinus drainage or a sweat - on demand any time I want. But I don't get those results from most peppers or hot sauces I've tried, and all of the oriental hot sauce I've been finding has at least 1 ingredient that I'm sensitive to if I have it very often. I can manage with dried Chinese peppers from the store but they're not as versatile as I like and not like homegrown.

Does anyone know of a pepper that has a shorter season, is relatively easy to grow, and can get me to break a sweat & drain my sinuses without frying out my taste buds?

Interesting spacetogrow. That is actually one of the benefits I get from heat, as I have chronic sinus issues that are helped alot from hot peppers. Kinda makes me sweat from the inside and help with drainage. I have noticed that back of the throat heat also seems to be the best for sinuses (another reason I like superhots), where as frontal heat tends to make you forehead sweat more, imo.

Horseradish products (wasabi, etc.) seem to clear the sinuses more so than hot peppers. I've never grown any so can't comment on that.

Spacetogrow, although I haven't grown a lot of them, I think chiltepins or Thais or something similar are fairly hot, early and easy to grow. Might want to check them out.

Personally, I don't even break a sweat for less then fresh cayenne heat anymore. I'd sure like to get my hands on some of Peppermeister's Jalapenos, as I love J's, but don't get a kick out of them anymore.

Agree with robeb. I also use horseradish, dijon and wasabi for the same effect. Worth a try.

Capoman, I agree with the chile tepin. I also wanna add the chile piquin is the perfect pepper for me, was super easy to grow and I have tons of peppers, which all air dried with no mold. The heat level is about 50-70,000 SU. The heat is wonderful, a nice smooth heat that only lasts a couple of minutes and has zero burn on your stomach like maybe jalapeno. I take one dried little pod and sprinkle the seeds in a bowl of gumbo. I also just bought Cholula hot sauce for my eggs because of the chile piquin content.

I don't know how my post got in here twice(and 40 minutes later?)...I only submitted it once.

From what I've read, the various pain receptors in different areas of your mouth and throat react differently to the six naturally occurring capsaicinoids in peppers. ex. homodihydrocapsaicin is responsible for throat burn.

If I can remember where I read this I'll post a link.

In his book "Peppers: A Story of Hot Pursuits" Amal Naj explains that it is common that a jalapeno with a relatively low scoville rating can effect a person in many different ways and for a much longer duration that the quickly dissipating heat of a much higher ranking pepper on the scoville scale such as the habanero (which at the time of this books publication was the hottest known variety).

He did go into exactly what Ottawapepper is talking about because capsaicin is actually a combination of molecules which vary greatly from one chile to another. Believe it or not, the genetic makeup of a pepper is far more complicated than humans.

I'm pretty sure the book is out of print, I got it on the 'bay for under five bucks. It's a good read for when you need your chile info fix while on the beach or the lake away from your beloved plants.

Here is a link that might be useful: Peppers: The Story of Hot Pursuits

Bill.....Is it possible you know everything? Geez....it seems like the only things I can remember are useless facts that may or may not win me a game show. If I could dump some of this useless knowledge, maybe I could remember something useful. It's obvious that if I intend to stay around here, I'm going to have to step my game up!

Tim

Thanks guys. I suspected there were different forms of capsaicin causing this, but couldn't find any references to it, including some chili books I have already. I'll have to check out that one Peppermeister.

"Believe it or not, the genetic makeup of a pepper is far more complicated than humans."

Yea, that is very very hard to believe!! I am no scientest but it is very hard for me to understand. We are so complex- we grow chilis ;) There are parts of the human brain we don't even know what purpose it has. I have a feeling humans genetic makeup is very complex ;)

Believe it friend. I'll link to a recent article about tomatoes. Almost all of the vegetable we eat are more genetically complex than we are.

Here is a link that might be useful: More Genes Than Humans: The Tomato Decoded

Thats pretty amazing. :)

I think it's almost all plants including grasses. We're not as special as we think we are. It was a surprise to genome scientists to find out most plants are far more complex genetically then humans..

Yea it is a suprise to me too!! :)

Thanks Capoman, robeb & Darylltx regarding clearing sinuses. I happen to have gotten a Thai pepper in a swap. It's still working on setting fruit so I don't know what kind it is. Is there a website that shows pictures of the different Thai pepper?

I love the taste of wasabi as much as I hate the taste of horseradish & dijon. But if I eat more than the tiniest bit of wasabi, it makes the crown of my head feel like it's exploding. Totally off topic, but does anyone else get that sensation when they eat wasabi? It feels almost electrical, like I imagine a cattle prod might feel right on your head.

Back to the original topic, I'd like to try some back of the throat pepper. Is there an easily obtained hot sauce that is made from a super hot (with preferably a short list of simple ingredients)? For comparison, I got Lucky's Habanero sauce and use only a half-teaspoonfull with a whole meal. Even at that dose, it annoys my stomach a little, which other peppers (that I've tried) don't do.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge, whether you're PEPPERMEISTER1 or not.lol

"Thanks for sharing your knowledge, whether you're PEPPERMEISTER1 or not.lol"

I dont understand? This is capoman's post? :)

I'm guessing it means: whether you're the "master of peppers" or not? That's how I took it.
It's just a name, and a fun one at that. no worries, glad to share my findings.

spacetogrow: Wasabi for me is like taking a sniff out of the bleach bottle. Kind of knocks me back, but only for a second or two then I recover.

As far as back of the throat sauces, specialty stores sell Ghost Pepper sauce that may do it for you, although make sure you get one that doesn't have capsaicin extract, which I find tends to burn the front of the mouth. I don't find that hab or scotch bonnet sauces you buy do it.

spacetogrow, what Capoman said.

In my experience, the Bhuts/Nagas hit the back of the throat harder than the other stupid hots.

If you really want to experience it, get a hold of a ripe pod.

How much can stress affect the hotness of a pepper? My mother-in-law grew her Jalapenos in a hallway during winter - relatively cool with little light. She got a few small peppers only but they were amazingly hot. I grew habs and bonnets and that J was definitely hotter.

That been said, i've noticed a huge difference between my container grown J's and those in the ground. The ones in containers have a lot better growing conditions (more nutrients + i can move them when the weather is unfavorable), yet they turn out mild. The ones in the ground growing in impoverished soil are much hotter.

Thai Dragons (F1, not a heritage, growing upwards) are subjectively the hottest ones i got this year among red and orange habanero, red and yellow scotch bonnets, tabasco and jalapeno. Although i must say that the habs i've tasted so far are also from containers. Waiting for the ones in the ground to ripen to get a final conclusion.

> I love the taste of wasabi as much as I hate the taste of horseradish & dijon.

Which is interesting because you can't get real wasabi in this country (and it's very expensive in Japan). You are eating grated horseradish with some green coloring in it (and possibly a few other things).

Yes, the "climbing to the top of the skull through the nasal cavity" effect is common. That's what makes it so effective. :-D

Djole: Thai Dragons are definitely HOT. I grew them last year, and i wish i had gotten some seeds this year because it was a dependable pepper.

I recently read that if your pepper plant does not get full sun exposure, the pods on the side of the plant that gets the least amount of sun will be noticeably less pungent from those facing the sun. I always harvest and throw them into one bowl before I remember to test this theory.

I love the HOT MUSTARD in the packets from the Chinese restaurants but I can never find a comparable match in the store. I have found Hot mustard powder which attacks your nostrils with the fire of a thousand suns.

I've been gone for a couple of days, so I'm just getting around to responding.

"Thanks for sharing your knowledge, whether you're PEPPERMEISTER1 or not.lol"
I meant no disrespect to capoman at all. Rather it was a joking reference - obviously failed - to peppernovice's question, "Bill.....Is it possible you know everything?" Better luck to me next time I try to make a joke online.

Thanks to everyone who responded to my questions.

But was ottowapepper joking with me - first referring to "stupid hots" and then encouraging me to get a whole pod of one? Or just encouraging due caution?

Thanks for the info on wasabi. I had thought I was getting a somewhat similar effect (but much more mild) from the Japanese mustard greens I grew this year. Turns out our western version of wasabi has mustard in it.

So much to learn - so little time. Thanks again for the help.

I don't believe Bill was messing with you. It's an experience every pepper grower should have. It's amazing you can put this small seed into a pot of dirt, water it, care for it, and in a few short months have a beautiful pod that can melt your face. :)

Tim

Yeah, for sure.

Different capsaicinoids produce very different heat effects.

Personally, I'm not a fan of the throat burn. It's nasty. What I do like is that quick heat that fades quickly but leaves a prickle of sweat on my forehead.

I've found that with Aji Norteno and Rocoto.

Contrast with other heat producers like mustard, wasabi and horseradish. All of those give you a rush of heat, often felt in the nose, but it's gone in seconds.

Here is a link that might be useful: Wiki capsaicinoids

Also, that throat burn always gives me hiccups, which is never pleasant.

"It's amazing you can put this small seed into a pot of dirt, water it, care for it, and in a few short months have a beautiful pod that can melt your face. :)"

It is even more amazing You can walk into a store, in one min, spend 1 dollar on some crystal hot sauce and have plenty of burn!!! :)