Maui Pepper Mango Meltdown Hot Sauce Review

Maui Pepper Co. Mango Meltdown Hot Sauce

Note: Support video available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGbDvmRyqlQ

After a prolonged layoff from the fruit-based sauces, I finally came around back to them on the last shopping trip, picking up a 3 pack from the Maui Pepper Company, all of which largely featured Habanero peppers. Habanero and Mango has sounded conceptually like a very winning combination, but the reality repeatedly has been a letdown, to the point where I just gave up. I wasn't really looking at getting back to any of the fruit sauces and considered all of them a wash...until now.

In this, we finally have someone who has figured out what degree of ripeness in which to use the mangos, so we have a solid base that is neither too sweet nor too sour, but right in the hot zone, where it is a perfect combination of them both, maybe even erring a bit on the sweeter side so that when the vinegar is added, it will cut it down nicely to that perfect level. Now, I may be embellishing a bit, as there are additional sweeteners, but whatever the formula, the effect is excellent. This is one of the more well-made sauces out there.

All of that would be nice, but you'd still have a sort of runny jelly were it not for the heat. Now, this isn't packing a ton of heat, by any means, but there is enough back end head to let you know it's there, maybe even a little past that. It is truly a delight, in many ways and though it won't go with everything, it does go with quite a lot. You could almost arguably use this interchangeably with a Louisiana-style sauce, especially on fried foods, for a very nice change of pace.

Bottom line: This is a very well-crafted sauce and probably the first fruit-based sauce I have really liked and enjoyed enough to want to buy again. Definitely if you're a fan of mangoes and Habaneros, this sauce is right up your alley, but for a first foray into fruit-based hot sauces, this is a fantastic starting point as well.

Breakdown:

            Heat level: 2
            Flavor: 7
            Flexibility: 6
            Enjoyment to dollar factor: 8

Overall: 6