Y’all it has been a HOT old summer here in Georgia this year. A heat dome has been floating over our farm but, you know, when the mercury rises here in the South, we just add more heat to our cooking. We like it spiced!
So, we were delighted to meet our neighbors on the 180 Degree Farm, 10 minutes down the road, who are growing some of the hottest chili peppers in the world. And it gave us an idea – why don’t we make a hot honey whiskey inspired by the heatwave of Summer 2024? We looked into it, worked out all the logistics, and we’re pleased to announce that Day Swigger Hot Honey Bourbon is on the way.
American chili peppers
The Texas Bird Pepper plants grown at 180 Decrees are the perfect starting point. Its little round chilis are capsules of pure heat, measuring up to 480,000 units on the Scoville Scale – eight times more powerful than jalapenos. You need to double glove to handle them.
We love that heat, but we also love the history of this ingredient. The Texas Bird Pepper is the only pepper native to North America. It was and still is enjoyed by Native Americans in their cooking, by the Spanish, and later by the founders of the United States. In fact, the peppers cultivated at 180 Degree Farm can trace their lineage back to 1812.
Farm fresh flavors
Down at the distillery, we’ve blended extracts from these locally grown peppers with honey produced by the bees here at Doc Brown Farm. We are perfecting recipe that will roll in barrels of three-year aged bourbon whiskey for 30 to 45 days to impart that hot, sweet goodness. The spirit will then be finished to 88 proof and bottled.
And for those who like it sweet without the heat, at the same time we are making our Day Swigger Honey Bourbon, which is also flavored with our own farm fresh honey.
Y’all can look out for our Day Swigger Hot Honey and Honey flavored bourbons from September in our online shop.
Finally, God bless the folks at 180 Degree Farm – for the fine work they’re doing growing organic food to support people fighting cancer. Find out more, on their website.
