Espelette pepper
The Espelette pepper (French: "Piment d'Espelette" ; Basque: "Ezpeletako biperra") is a variety of "Capsicum annuum" that is cultivated in the French commune of Espelette, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, traditionally the northern territory of the Basque people. On 1 June 2000, it was classified as an AOC product and was confirmed as an APO product on 22 August 2002.

Chili pepper, originating in Central and South America, was introduced into France during the 16th century. After first being used medicinally, it became popular as a condiment and for the conservation of meats. It is now a cornerstone of Basque cuisine, where it has gradually replaced black pepper and it is a key ingredient in piperade.

AOC espelette peppers are cultivated in the following communes: Ainhoa, Cambo-les-Bains, Espelette, Halsou, Itxassou, Jatxou, Larressore, Saint-Pée-sur-Nivelle, Souraïde, and Ustaritz. They are harvested in late summer and, in September, characteristic festoons of pepper are hung on balconies and house walls throughout the communes to dry out. An annual pepper festival organized by Confrérie du Piment d'Espelette, held since 1968 on the last weekend in October, attracts some 20,000 tourists.

This pepper attains a maximum grade of only 4,000 on the Scoville scale and is therefore considered only mildly hot. It can be purchased as festoons of fresh or dried peppers, as ground pepper, or puréed or pickled in jars.

In the United States, non-AOC espelette peppers grown and marketed in California may be fresher than imported AOC espelette peppers.

According to the Syndicat du Piment d’Espelette, the cooperative formed to get the AOC designation, there are 160 producers of AOC Piment d'Espelette that plant and in 2014, they produced 203 tons of powdered Piment d'Espelette and 1,300 tons of raw pepper.
Q150
French
Concept
Q8752
Basque
Concept
Q1380
Capsicum annuum
Concept
Q484170
commune
Concept
Q236575
Espelette
LOC
Q12703
Pyrénées-Atlantiques
LOC
Q98405
northern territory
LOC
Q126756
Basque people
MEDIA
Q1565828
AOC
Concept
Q13439060
APO
Concept
Q2596997
condiment
Concept
Q521179
Basque cuisine
Concept
Q43084
black pepper
Concept
Q1555816
piperade
Concept
Q212962
Ainhoa
LOC
Q197014
Cambo-les-Bains
LOC
Q236575
Espelette
LOC
Q196980
Halsou
LOC
Q683474
Itxassou
LOC
Q543986
Jatxou
LOC
Q843484
Larressore
LOC
Q243738
Saint-Pée-sur-Nivelle
LOC
Q645206
Souraïde
LOC
Q269874
Ustaritz
LOC
Q929132
festoon
Concept
Q207047
Scoville scale
Concept
Q636056
purée
Concept
Q1538429
Espelette pepper
Concept
2000-06-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1 June 2000
DATE
2002-08-22T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
22 August 2002
DATE
1968-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1968
DATE
2014-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
2014
DATE
+16^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
16
NUMBER
subclass of
named after
product certification
named after
instance of
located in the administrative territorial entity
part of