Unlike true peppers, which come exclusively from the Piper Nigrum, P. longum and P. cubeba families, false peppers do not belong to the Piper genus, and in fact are not even members of the Piperaceae family.
So what is a false pepper?
Fake peppers cover a lot of ground: condiments, blends, berries or spices bearing the name pepper. They can have very different flavors from real peppers, to the point of being very hot and spicy, or very fruity and milder.
Why are they called faux-poivres?
If you've read the early history of spices around the world, you'll have noticed that pepper was worth its weight in gold just a few centuries ago, and that cunning was already a thing of the world. It was therefore tempting to pass off a few berries or spices as pepper by calling them monk's pepper (Vitex agnus castus) or Guinea pepper. The latter was a huge success in Europe, particularly in France, as the famous "seed of paradise" tasted so much like pepper, but cost far less than real pepper. The deception only lasted a short time (a few centuries, after all!), and the discovery of its country of origin led to its total disappearance from Europe in favor of pepper, which was becoming increasingly popular.
What are the main false peppers?
The list could be long, so I'll restrict myself to the main ones...
Pink pepper (pink berry)
Monk's pepper (chaste tree)
Jamaican pepper
Guinea pepper (Maniguette or Bay of Paradise)
Cayenne pepper
Sansho berry (Japanese pepper)
Timur pepper (the Timur berry from Nepal)
Laos pepper (Ma Khaen Bay)
