Photos by Kyle Green | The Roanoke Times

Wine tasters at the Wine Down the Music Trail festival in Floyd on Saturday react to a wine called Kiss the Devil, which is made of 30 different types of hot peppers. Vintner Shannon Johnson (far right, black shirt) said the wine is "hot, hot, hot."

Crowds make their way toward the main stage Saturday. Wine Down the Music Trail continues from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. today.

As participants protect themselves with umbrellas, music group Club Boheme performs Saturday.

FLOYD -- Timidly, with a look of trepidation, Ashley Green held out her wine glass.

"I'm going to count to three and you all are going to try it," said Levi Markham, who had just filled Green's glass, along with about half a dozen others, with a splash of wine at the Wine Down the Music Trail festival in Floyd on Saturday. "After you try it you're going to yell out 'Woo.' If you don't say it, you don't get the chaser; and you're going to want the chaser."

After eyeballing the light-colored liquid at the bottom of her glass, Green lifted it to her lips, tossed her head back and swallowed. Then held her glass out for a large tasting sip of the chaser, which turned out to be a much sweeter wine made from grapes instead of chilies.

A loud cheer was followed by contorted faces as everyone talked about what was described as the hottest wine.

Green and the others had just kissed the devil, or at least had a sip of the wine called Kiss the Devil made by Peaks of the Otter Winery.

It's a cooking wine made from a blend of 30 varieties of hot peppers, and it's hot, according to those who stopped by to sample it at the festival. The wine and music festival continues today.

The organizers of Wine Down the Music Trail said that attendance has been growing. In its fourth year, the promoters with Across-the-Way Productions said they expect the weekend festival to draw 5,000 people. If that happens, that will be an increase from the 4,000 who attended last year. An attendance estimate for Saturday wasn't available but Kris Hodges, a co-founder of the festival, said scattered rain didn't appear to have an adverse impact.

Markham said he's sure more people will be back to "kiss the devil."

It wasn't the first time Green, of Blacksburg, had sampled the wine.

"I can't describe how hot it is," she said. "It is beyond hot sauce. It just sits there."

Only a few people said they truly enjoyed the spicy hot wine that is made of 40 percent habanero peppers.

Glenn Stump was one of them.

After taking a swig, Stump looked up without the typical painful expression and asked about the price for a bottle. A 375-milliliter bottle is $15 and is 11 percent alcohol. As of 2 p.m., only seven bottles had been sold.

"It smells great, it has a ton of aroma," said Stump, who drove from North Carolina for the festival. "The chili smell is really good. It smells like chili and when you first drink it, it gives you that chili pepper burn, but it's not overpowering."

Stump made the purchase and added that he thought it would help to flavor meat, or might even make a nice shot to share with friends at a dinner party.

Peaks of the Otter Winery, which specializes in fruit wines, has made the hot pepper wine for eight years, Shannon Johnson said. Johnson's father, Danny Johnson, owns the small Bedford winery and invented Kiss the Devil.

"It's hot, hot, hot," the younger Johnson said. "Better for basting than tasting, but it sure gets a reaction."

While the hot stuff gets the reaction, some of the other wines sell more bottles. The winery's most popular wine, called Chili Dawg, is a combination of the Kiss the Devil and an apple wine.

Through the summer months, Johnson said they are at festivals, such as Wine Down the Music Trail, every weekend. A slowing economy has hurt sales a little, but he said the number of people sampling his wines keeps growing as wine festivals seem to be reaching more people.

Hodges said festivals have been growing in popularity because they are a great way to experience local wines. He also said that festivals provide a good way to do business for smaller vintners.

"This is where wineries are making the most money because of the new distribution laws in Virginia," Hodges said. "This is where they want to come."