Giant Yellow Cardi Scorpion Pepper Review

The 2018 outdoor pepper season is long done, but I’ve got one last pepper review to publish. I ordered these Giant Yellow Cardi Scorpion seeds from The Hippy Seed Company about this time last year and I’m so glad I did. These fiery pods turned out to be some of my favorite of the season!

I grew out two plants from the same seed packet, but only one of them produced the correct phenotype. The other pods looked more like giant, smooth-skinned Ghost peppers. At any rate, the Yellow Cardi Scorpions were all fairly sizable with a contorted, twisted appearance — some also displayed decent bumpiness.

Once halved, the peppers show a thin wall and a placenta that is pretty concentrated near the stem with a small amount of seeds. The seeds also appeared to mimic the twisted nature of the ripe fruit. There wasn’t an over abundance of capsaicin oil, but the inner walls still shined with it.

The aroma of each pod is packed with orange and pineapple tropical fruitiness with just enough chile heat to let you know it means business. There’s a light floral trait that lingers at the edges. Once you start snacking on the Yellow Cardi Scorpion the fruitiness hits right away with lemon and orange notes.

The heat builds smoothly to a full tongue burn with a bit of a stinging character. It’s a slow builder that eventually spreads across the roof of the mouth and down the throat. The fire is fairly intense at its peak about six or so minutes into the experience, eventually plateauing for about ten minutes before fading oh so slowly to a lingering burn and warmth in the chest.

The Yellow Cardi Scorpion is an excellent tasting and versatile pepper. The plant wasn’t all that prolific, but the fiery pods I did harvest were well worth the effort. I enjoyed the peppers fresh and in my super simple sauce recipe. I will definitely be growing more of these in the future.