‘Cayennetta’ is an All-America Selections vegetable winner for 2012 and a blue-ribbon winner for me.

I’d never entered anything in a county fair until this year. And what a year it’s turned out to be.

I entered 5 different produce competitions and came home with 5 blue ribbons. Here’s to beginner’s luck!

At the Denver County Fair, my ‘Cayennetta’ entry of two fire-engine red peppers must have gained the judge’s attention. These were the only red peppers in the category that included large green jalapenos, purple jalapenos, Spanish ‘Padron’ and even a plate of Naga-Bih Jolokia ‘Ghost’ peppers.

‘Cayennetta’ is a new pepper variety and was selected by AAS as a top vegetable for 2012. AAS is a non-profit organization dedicated to testing new garden seed varieties, selecting the very best as “winners” and then introducing them to gardeners to grow in their own gardens.