Chile peppers can be traced back thousands of year to South America and the West Indies. It is believed that Christopher Colombus first introduced Chile peppers to the new world.

It was 1912 and a Pharmacist came up with an idea. With so many different peppers how could one determine their individual heat level.? From that question, the Scoville scale was born. This method is still employed today to determine the heat level of various Chiles. The scale is based on units and measure the amount of capsaicin, which is the natural ingredient that gives peppers their heat.

According to a newspaper article in 2000, four scientists determined that the hottest Chile pepper on earth was an Indian pepper called Naga Jolokia. This extreme member of the habanero family is said to rate 855,000 on the Scoville scale.