SBS Demon Habanero

SBS Demon Habanero is a modern Capsicum chinense habanero-type line remembered in the pepper community as a creation associated with Steve Foster, known in grower circles as SBS or Scotch Bonnet Steve. Later recollections also mention possible input from Riser and others, but the clearest current exact-name seller lineage describes it as a cross between Red Dominica and Guadalupe Habanero.

Live descriptions are fairly consistent on the plant itself. It is described as a very productive, bushy plant that grows to about 90 cm to nearly 1.0 m tall, producing elongated, slightly uneven spindle-shaped pods that ripen from green to red. Flavour is usually described as sweet and fruity with a little acidity and tropical character, and the most common use pattern across sources is fresh eating, salsas, and especially sauces.

The main thing that does not line up perfectly online is heat. Stronger current exact-name listings place it around 100,000 to 350,000 SHU, which is why 225,000 SHU is a fair single-number entry here, but some social and trade mentions float lower figures for SBS Demon material. So it is clearly a hot habanero-type chinense, but the exact SHU is not tightly standardised in the live sources.

Culturally, the interesting part is not a regional food tradition so much as its place in the older hobby-grower and collector scene. By 2009 it was already appearing in grow lists alongside other SBS lines, and recent forum posts still refer to it as one of Steve Foster’s remembered creations that growers actively try to track down and preserve.