Kraken Scorpion Pepper Review
The Kraken Scorpion was developed in 2013 by grower Mike Hess, the result of crossing a Bhut Jolokia with a chocolate Trinidad Scorpion. I grew out two plants for 2020 and both were packed with consistently shaped, flavored and heat brown peppers with slight variations in sizes – combining for well over 100 ripe pods by season’s end. Some looked like the sample below, resembling the Chocolate Bhutlah while others produced a tiny tail or stinger. Across the board, all were quite tasty and fiery.
As stated above, these good-sized peppers were fairly consistent in shape with some range in size. The brown skin is wrinkled and lightly blistered much like the Chocolate Bhutlahs I’ve grown in the past. Inside, the fruit are just as frightening with that green tinge often associated with brown peppers, as well as a solid cluster of placenta and seed. A sheen of capsaicin oil lines the inner walls of the thin-skinned Kraken.
The aroma is very floral – a trait that I am not a huge fan of personally. The Kraken as an earthy trait with hints of the heat to come. One sniff and you just know you’re going to be in for a rough time. The flavor mirror the aroma with a heavy amount of floral flavors up front and a lingering earthiness.
The heat on the Kraken is deceiving. It doesn’t attack the senses like some other chocolate varieties I’ve encountered in the past. Instead, the build on this pepper is excruciatingly slow, starting at the roof of the mouth before eventually spreading like a glacier across the tongue and gums. I actually felt the hot coal of the chewed sample in my gut long before I started to worry about my mouth. While the build takes forever, it is quite smooth for a superhot, sitting at the plateau for a good long while with a bit of a sting to the intense burn. For as sluggish as the build up of heat was, it disappears pretty quickly.
The floral aspects of the Kraken aside, I really enjoyed this experience. The flowery traits start off strong, but do fade quick enough so at to not ruin the flavor for my personal liking. These peppers have appeared in many sauces I have made since the end of the season and in a powder blend that has been causing me pain and joy with each taste. While my supply in the freezer is pretty solid, I will definitely keep this one available for future growing seasons.