UPDATE 1: Video support available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9EdoMUPJi-M
UPDATE 2: Received a response from Reilly Foods. The sauces (see below) are identical and contain different labeling specific to various regions, where one name sells better than the other. This confirms some of the speculation I indulge in both reviews, and in the video for this sauce.
For a good, long time, I passed this by, in favor of other Louisiana-style sauces. Even once I became more familiar with (brother? clone?) the other entry from TryMe in this market, the Tennessee Sunshine sauce, I still skipped this one, as my preference is nearly always towards a Louisiana-style sauces over a Cajun style, for reasons I have outlined frequently in the various reviews, but will touch on by noting that the Cajun styles tend to feature a lot more spices, garlic and so on, which I find unnecessary at best.Anyway, I forgot about my apprehensions when poking around and picked this bottle up. It's funny, the naming of the Tennessee sauce was something I found confusing, even back then, along with the seeming duplication. Once I finally cracked open the bottle, things got a lot more confusing. Consistency was similar and since I had an already opened bottle of the Tennessee that I got for the FOH video of that, I was able to compare them head-to-head. There may be a slight difference in viscosity, but it is very hard to detect (will get into this more in the video for this sauce). Looking into it more, it appeared to be identical to the Tennessee sauce, all the way down to the ingredient panel, even the label copy. The main difference, apparently, was the name. Hmmmmm.
Both are still available on the website, at an identical price point, which leads me to wondering why the company would want such duplication in the line. Answering that question, along with why an obvious Louisiana-styled sauce would be called Tennessee, led me on a quest. I called up Detective Google and tried to unravel this mystery. Tennessee Sunshine, at least at one time, was made in Knoxville, which probably answers that, but why the duplication? Were they making identical sauces in two different states? If so, to what end? Is it so markets that wanted Cajun would just buy that? Was it for people who hated Tennessee? The search led me to a campaign from the state of Louisiana against "counterfeit Cajun," as they evidently take that word very seriously down that way. I was not able to find any sort of definitive answer, I must say, so wrote to Reily Foods, who now own the TryMe line, to see what response I am able to get. I will put any answer from them in either the video or update this review (see above).
For now, let's turn to the sauce. All what I said in the Tennessee Sunshine review applies here. One of these is a clone of the other, as far as I'm able to determine, though I don't know which is which. Neither I would call an actual Cajun sauce, with the ingredients being Cayenne pepper (including bits of it in the actual sauce), vinegar and salt. Both also have vegetable gum, but that's an emulsifier/suspension agent and irrelevant to flavor. The flavor of both is quite good, though there is precious little heat. Both make outstanding demonstrations of a Louisiana-style sauce and if you're looking for the epitome of what that kind of sauce should taste like, this is a good way to be introduced, given that it does not carry as much of the harshness, as something like Crystal does. I will say that I don't prefer the bits of pepper in it, though, and wish they'd strain it before bottling, but a minor quibble overall.
Bottom line: Like line-up mate Tennessee Sunshine, this is an excellent tasting entry into the Louisiana-style, but with a lower heat than I prefer, not anything I would keep at hand. Great in a pinch or for an introduction to the style.
Breakdown:
Heat level: 1
Flavor: 8
Flexibility: 7
Enjoyment to dollar factor: 7
Overall: 6
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