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favorite Favorite bonnet?

The current thread in the Growing section titled "Scotch Bonnet List" had me thinking: what's your favorite bonnet or cross (ex: sb7j, elysium oxide) and why? Taste, look, heat, production, etc.
 
Ghostpepperevolution said:
Havent had much experience with them yet but the chocolate scotch Bonnet is the one Im most favoring right now
I've got one of those growing, started super late, hopefully I've overwinter that one.

I've tried some of the crosses, like Sb7J and Scotch Brain, and the WHP SB, none really grew true, so I'll have to revisit those. I've loved the Bahamian Goat, I know it's not a bonnet, but sometimes included as a pseudo-bonnet.
Next year I'm finally trying out the famous Papa Dreadie(thanks Showmedasauce)! And also MOA Red
 
1st- TFM. Average Bonnet heat level, but I've never had a fruitier tasting pod. To me, it definitely has the citrusy Bonnet flavor, but also has an element of "tropical" fruit as well. Obviously subjective, but damn, they're tasty pods!

2nd- Chocolate Scotch Bonnet. I've only had the strain from Cross Country Nurseries, but this is another fantastic pod. A litter higher SHU than a "regular" (yellow) Bonnet. I think I've read that they can get up to about 425,000 SHU (don't quote me on that ;) ). I think they start out pretty damn sweet, followed by nice smoky undertones, that'll get your forehead sweating a little bit :)

3rd- Tough choice, but I'd probably say MoA, Yellow. Amazing flavor, and how could you not love the "original"?! They're worth growing for the shape alone ;)

Love me some Bonnets! :party:
http://thehotpepper.com/topic/64964-mikeusmc-2017-grow/?p=1471536
 
CCN's MOA yellow tasted very good but i got very few if any with a nice shape. Production was not that great either. Seemed pretty hot for a yellow bonnet. A few pods were real scorchers.
 
MidWestChilehead MOA reds crank out the pods and mine were quite hot for bonnets. Most of mine looked a little "brainy" but shape was nice on most of them.....Awesome earlier producer for me...i would grow a few of these just to get earlier pods while others are still turning/producing.
 
P. Dreadie really won me over this year. Flavor was great and production was extremely good. A bit slower to start than the MOA reds but came on strong later in the season....Makes a really great sauce.
 
I am a huge TFM fan. Definitely number one, incredible flavor. Hearty plants don't grow to talk but bushy with a ton of pods, many of which get pretty big themselves. If i had to choose one, that'd be the one.

Thankfully, i don't have to choose just one. I love the Foodarama because they're meatier and if you're gonna smoke them, they take longer to dry out but they hold the smoke flavor better. I might even try pickling them this year because they MIGHT have enough flesh for it to be worthwhile. (Maybe not, though.)

I grew MOAs again this year and i like them but they sure do tend to throw off-pheno pods. I planted two from yellow seeds that are throwing red pods which are really nicely shaped and uniformly shaped. The rest are pushing out yellow pods but they're kinda saggy-shaped. If grow them again, but I'm not doing to.

Last year, i grew Dreadies and had a terrible time germinating them. The one plant that did geminate for me here nicely and produced a decent crop of beautiful and tasty pods. I tried again this year and ran into the same problem with germination, which is weird b/c over only had those problems with Dreadies and Scotch Brains. I'm giving them another shot in 2019; they're with another chance because they're danged good but i prefer plants that are easier to work with.

I like a lot of other Bonnet-y peppers, but to me, real Bonnets are yellow. I grow Safis and like them but they don't fulfill my Bonnet craving. Same can be said for other reds, SB7J, Freeport Orange SBs, etc.

But, if i was counting other colors, I'd put those Freeport Oranges high on the list. Great plants, great peppers... Just tops. But i wouldn't put them in the same category, really, as my Yellas.
 
I had trouble germinating the TFM. I went through the whole pack, and I did eventually get one going. That was satisfying. I'm seeing lots of praise for that variety. Hoping I can carry it to fruit and at least get more seed attempts. Maybe keep the plant around for a while longer.
 
Jase4224 said:
MoA just tasted like a green bell pepper to me.
IMG_7240.GIF
 
I don't agree that the MOA tastes like a green Bell, but i do detect some annuum notes in the flavor profile. Moreso than i do with most of the other i have tried. I still have seeds so I'll likely grow them again, but I'm not itching to buy more seeds once i grow thru the ones i have now.
 
HMU if you need some seeds. I'm still getting really good germ rates our of seeds collected from 2016's harvest.


Mr. West said:
I had trouble germinating the TFM. I went through the whole pack, and I did eventually get one going. That was satisfying. I'm seeing lots of praise for that variety. Hoping I can carry it to fruit and at least get more seed attempts. Maybe keep the plant around for a while longer.
 
Ruid said:
I've heard of these but thought it was just one pepper.
You're not too far off. They all trace back to at least include a single variety, but somehow started to gain different traits. Kind of like a bhut jolokia vs a giant bhut jolokia (afaik). They trace back to the same roots, but have unique characteristics.
 
That sounds really interesting! Reading anything longer than an article on the internet wears my mind down and gives me a headache, though. Are there are books on the subject that I could buy?
 
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