Blis Blast Hot Sauce Review

Blis Blast Hot Pepper Sauce

Update: Support video available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lrwBxdyPlI

This is a bit of an unusual story, in that I don't usually come across sauces in this manner. One day, I was messing about online, trying to keep a pulse on what might be coming down the pipeline. I was looking for spicy snacks for the FOH YouTube video series I do, but somewhere along the line, I wound up looking at lists of what other people thought were the best hot sauces. Most of these lists are mass market commercial sources, meaning non-chilehead, and as such, a large number of the sauces are stuff like Cholula, Tabasco, etc., without any real heat at all to them. Some of them wound up a bit more exotic and had a few sauces that appeared on The Hot Ones, but this, which I'd never heard of prior, showed up enough times that I remembered it. So, I ordered a bottle.

It comes in a very heavy glass container. As you can see in the picture, the bottom of this, for whatever reason, is very thick. It comes from a company who makes a lot of other products that are bourbon barrel aged. This has been a trend in cooking shows for a fair bit, in which you can ideally get the flavor of the booze without the alcohol bite. The idea of aging peppers in such barrels is kind of an interesting one and I was curious to see how such as sauce would play out. The peppers are not generally ones you think of for heat: Cayenne, Arbol, Chipotle, and this also contains another of their products, a maple syrup, also from those same bourbon barrels.

The flavor of bourbon is definitely well present here. There is no actual alcohol, so if you enjoy the flavor of bourbon, but don't like the bite, that is essentially what you get. This mostly reads as a Cayenne sauce, though there are little hints of Arbol. It is definitely a lot thicker than most Cayenne sauces, however, probably due to all the sweeteners, sugar and the aforementioned maple syrup. I'd put it closer to Cajun than a Louisiana-style, but the sample applications would generally apply. It is a very uniquely flavored sauce; I can't say I've had any like it before. That does not mean, however, anything other than it is very individual in flavor profile.

I tested this fairly extensively, including as a grill sauce, and while it was overall serviceable in all instances where I tested it, in no application did I find where I wouldn't rather have had something else. I think this is due to the conjunction between the leading Cayenne and then notes that I would not normally expect in a Cayenne, namely the Arbol and bourbon. The maple syrup and Chipotle are nearly lost entirely. Chipotle often winds up that way, in that makers do not want to overpower their sauce with the smokiness, so they hang back to the point that it's drowned out entirely, which is what I think happened here. Heat, as to be expected, is largely absent, so not much here for chileheads on that front.

Bottom line: This is a very tame overall sauce, highly subject to individual taste. While I don't think it was entirely successful and didn't meet mine fully, this is a very worthwhile sauce to find and try. 

Breakdown:

            Heat level: 0
            Flavor: 5
            Flexibility: 5
            Enjoyment to dollar factor: 4

Overall: 4

CaJohn's Small Batch Habanero Garlic Hot Sauce Review

CaJohn's Small Batch Habanero Garlic Hot Sauce

Note: Support video available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dn3ly3Jnl9k

I've been trying to give the CaJohn's a bit of a break, partially because there are more of them than any other sauce maker, both here and on the FOH video series, but also because trying to keep up with his numerous variations can be challenging and if I chased after those, I wouldn't have a lot of time left for some of the other equally deserving sauces out there (also my substantial backlog). I will say, though, if there is one maker I can count on to be as close to a sure thing as there is, and who has been that way for as long as I've been doing this blog, it is CaJohn's. So, when I found that this was an important sauce to him, based on the very historic recipe, given his prominence in the industry itself, I bumped this to the top of my life as my introduction to the Small Batch series, which I've definitely been meaning to get into more.

This has won a number of awards, but one of the more curious to me, as it won for being a Lousiana-style sauce. I would put this as more of an everyday/table or Habanero sauce, maybe even extending it to Cajun, to a degree, but Louisiana-style seems inaccurate. This is a very smooth pouring, but perhaps medium thickness to the sauce and would be problematic with a restrictor cap. It is pretty far from watery. So, in terms of both consistency and flavor profile, it does not meet that style of sauce well, if at all.

That aside, it is a fairly pure-tasting sauce, which one can surmise from the label itself, which is transparent, with white text. It clearly is meant to emphasize that this sauce is something special. Honestly, I don't know if I would go that far, as it is a bit on the basic, one-note side, but it does taste quite good. If you like Habaneros more than I do, of course, you will probably enjoy it more. If you've read about the so-called "fruitiness" of Habaneros, this is perhaps the sauce I would choose as the one that best exemplifies it and eating this will give you an immediate understanding of what is meant (and often missing in other sauces). Heat starts off with an immediate blast, then settles into a nice glow, rather like the El Yucateco Red (reviewed elsewhere here), only perhaps hotter. This one also plays nicely with a fairly wide variety of foods, including tacos. This also again lends more to the table/everyday style. I did enjoy it in a pretty wide variety of settings, but I'd put it more solidly in the middle for most of them, in that, while I did find it solid, it was not near the top of sauces I'd tried in that application. 

Bottom line: A very well-done, nicely rounded sauce that will work well in a variety of settings and would serve as a great introduction point to Habaneros (or possibly a solid reminder).

Breakdown:

            Heat level: 2
            Flavor: 8
            Flexibility: 8
            Enjoyment to dollar factor: 10

Overall: 7

Hellfire Sauceress Hot Sauce Review

Hellfire Private Reserve Sauceress

Note: Support video available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCc2Tyx3UaA

Well, Hellfire has finally managed to go and do it. "Do what?" I can imagine some of you asking. They have finally made a sauce that convinced me to not only eat, but to eat and enjoy hot sauce on ice cream. The concept, I want to say, was either their Blueberry Hell (which did not work, to my mind, for ice cream) or something from High River (which similarly did not work), but definitely this is something Hellfire pushes a lot. You would think the idea is counter-intuitive, given that ice cream, especially the higher fat ones, will do a nice job tamping down blazing heat in the mouth or gut. Ice cream also eliminates a lot of flavor notes, so often you will not get a rewarding experience. However, Hellfire keeps trying, keeps insisting, and here, they finally made it through.

They have really hit on something I think that is pretty unique to them, which is the idea of a dessert sauce and yes, I do mean that you could consider eating just this sauce itself as a dessert. It comes across as somewhat of a salty apple pie filling, despite there being no actual apple in it, which also makes it extremely malleable as far as application, all the way from pork chops to peanut butter to ice cream to a special something you'll see in the video. They also indicate pizza, but, oddly enough, like chicken, I did not find it to be anything I especially wanted to eat again in that setting, probably due to the cinnamon. I also did not find it particularly nice on hamburger, either, but I tried it on quite a few different foods I would not normally use hot sauce at all on. It's fascinating to me that there is a lot of tropical fruit in here and this reads as anything but tropical. So, definitely one of the more flavorful and unique sauces out there from one of the more innovative hot sauce companies.

Heat-wise, this has Fatalii, 7-Pot Primo, and Scotch Bonnet, but despite all of that, is really fairly tame. This is not going to set your mouth on fire, but does have a very nice build and so if you go chasing those flavor notes around, you will be rewarding with a very pleasant mouth burn.  It is a rather thick and chunky sauce, but also rather nicely doesn't get caught in the neck. It definitely is probably my favorite sauce that I've had this year, but with the composite score, is not quite enough to get it in SOTY contention in what is another very competitive year.

Bottom line: If you've ever wondered how anyone could ever successfully make a superhot-based hot sauce into an actual dessert sauce, look no further. This is borderline magic and absolutely worth a look.

Breakdown:

            Heat level: 3
            Flavor: 10
            Flexibility: 7
            Enjoyment to dollar factor: 10

Overall: 8

Arthur Wayne Mango Habanero Hot Sauce Review

Arthur Wayne Mango Habanero

Note: Support video available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qx0zqAMDGb8

This is a bit of an oddity and as I get into this, we will see why. I will start by observing that I got this bottle last year and didn't manage to fit it in until recently, as I had a lot of not only fruit-based sweet hots, but specifically Mango-Habanero sweet hots, which is a touch odd, now that I think on it. I believe this is one of the newer labels on this bottle, but could not find any kind of best-by date or anything anywhere. So, it is possible there is something wrong with the sauce, but it does not even remotely match up to the label copy, which indicates a sweet sauce. This one is pretty far from that, both sour and having a note somewhat distinctive of dirt or dust. I suspect this is the Fresnos in there, but can't be sure. Either way, the mangoes used here were apparently unripe, as even the additional element of sugar is lending little sweetness.

I have had sour mango Habanero sauces before and always find it kind of bracing. A fruit-based sauce is, to my mind, meant to be sweet, with the fruit both imparting flavor notes, but also some natural sweetness as well. There is none of that to be found here, which makes this a somewhat unenjoyable sauce to consume. Using a white vinegar will definitely bring a pucker, as that is one of the more abrasive ones, but even with that the lead ingredient, this comes across as somewhat more sour than it should, at least to my mind anyway. 

Heat-wise, this is fairly minimal. With a number of manufacturers, I can usually automatically cut any rating they have in half and get a solid estimate, but this one, I needed to cut by about 2/3. One may observe that the ratings are for normies, but even with my tolerance fairly nominal, as it is at this point, this is not above a 2 and even a 2 is kind of a push. 

Bottom line: Like the Danny Cash Mango hot sauce in the TOC list (to your right), this is a sauce by a manufacturer who has produced a lot of other stuff I like (two sauces from this maker were in contention for SOTY last year), with this particular one being a disappointment.

Breakdown:

            Heat level: 2
            Flavor: 2
            Flexibility: 4
            Enjoyment to dollar factor: 0

Overall: 2

Chilehead's Cayenne Hot Sauce Review

Chilehead's Cayenne Hot Sauce

Note: Support video available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hX9y6VnUno

A while ago, I think towards the end of last year, possibly during one of the Black Friday or Cyber sales of the time, I bought a number of sauces that were novelty. Several of them were Louisiana-style Cayenne sauces, which I can never seem to quite have enough of, as this is one of my most-used and favorite styles. I think this is possibly not a novelty sauce or is at least not meant to be one, as I believe the company (Hot Sauce Fanatics) also has several other sauces from different peppers. So, while I'm inclined to dunk on the somewhat amusing label copy (maybe in the video), I will dispense with that here.

I've said before that Louisiana-style sauces need not be complicated, just peppers, salt, vinegar (and maybe water) and that is about the size of what we have here. There is also xantham gum, which I don't really object to, as it never hurts to have a stabilizer in there, depending on the ingredients and consistency. This one is citing aged red peppers as the ingredient, but the label itself lists Cayenne, so we know what we're getting into. Typical color and runniness and absence of heat normal to this style.

This one, however, tastes a bit on the cheap side. While it is fine as something to have around in that style, it is not one of the better examples, flavor-wise. I don't know enough about making hot sauce personally to observe where it went wrong, but with things involving food, generally the quality of the base will dictate the end results. It is not as offensively punchy as Crystal tends to be, but it's along those same lines in terms of flavor. Given that those bottles are usually 8+ oz. for $1, this one, even at $3, as I recall, is not exactly a bargain.

Bottom line: For better or worse, this is basically just another Louisiana-style Cayenne sauce, with both better and worse and more expensive out there.

Breakdown:

            Heat level: 0
            Flavor: 4
            Flexibility: 7
            Enjoyment to dollar factor: 4

Overall: 4

Gindo's Smoked Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce

Gindo's Smoked Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce

Note: This sauce was provided for purposes of review by Roger Damptz of Burn Your Tongue. Check him out on Facebook or, better yet, head on over to his new online outlet where you can shop the widest selection available anywhere, www.burnyourtongueonline.com.

Note: Support video available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JrwguepiDE

The thought, when I first got this, was that it would be simply a hotter version of the Original (red), which is my current leader for SOTY 2021 (and, of course, reviewed elsewhere here), and in a way, that is not far off the mark, but the trade here is definitely one of flavor in favor of heat. There is a much heavier garlic influence here, particularly on the back end, and a very delicate touch of smoke notes. Here, we have both two different types of Ghost and Habanero and even some Carolina Reapers thrown in for good measure. It does definitely lend a distinct touch of bitterness to proceedings, but I could see where one might have the Original and feel like it could do with a bit more heat. Overall, this is an exceedingly well-done sauce and the balance between ingredients is quite good, if, as noted, a touch on the bitter side, which one would sort of expect, given that many superhots.

As to that heat, there is not really a great deal of it here, either, despite those noted peppers. This is still very much a flavor-forward blend, which appears to be the hallmark of this sauce company, itself fast becoming one of my favorites. Much like that Original, which seems to be the best comparison to me, this one will work on nearly anything. While not as flavorful as that other sauce, it does have some interesting flavor notes that end some intriguing touches to a number of foods. However, on strongly flavored foods, it does have a propensity to lose a lot of those more subtle nuances, being not as strongly flavored, overall, as the Original. 

Bottom line: Another absolute stunner of a sauce, though trading flavor for heat reduces things overall a bit.

Breakdown:

            Heat level: 2
            Flavor: 7
            Flexibility: 9
            Enjoyment to dollar factor: 9

Overall: 7