Spicefreak

Greetings, spice lovers, and welcome to the last of my Dragon’s Blood reviews.

There is one more item from Chilli Pepper Pete that I’ll be looking at but it’s not a part of their main line. It’s a wild stand alone item that I’m afraid you’re going to have to wait for because today, we’re looking at the Dragon’s Blood Hot Fruity Sauce.

 

A far brighter bottle than most of the others. Maybe even than the neon product art of the Green Salsa.

This intense yellow comes at a cost, however, as, while it contrasts fairly well with the black, the gradient between the two takes on something of a murky look and the flames at the bottom most definitely do not stand out against the sauce itself.

While I get that the labelling had to match both the rest of the line and the flavours within, I don’t see why it couldn’t have been a bit more orange at the very least.

Yet I can’t say with any certainty that it doesn’t look much better in reality. After all, that salsa looked completely different in person.

This sauce, though, does not.

It’s almost exactly the same bright yellow we see above, only with added grains of finely blended fruit strewn throughout.

They’re mostly mango but there’s also a little apricot, onion and, the ingredient that really changes things up here, some orange-looking shreds of scotch bonnet.

Yes, this may be a mango and habanero sauce like countless others but the habanero isn’t the only chilli in here. In fact, despite being the main one, it’s not even the one I taste most.

While the brighter, fruity taste of orange habanero certainly comes through as an undertone, its apricot and carrot like notes aren’t nearly as obvious as the slightly richer flavour of the bonnet, which to me here resembles much darker fruit and maybe a touch of the savoury elements of tomatoes.

But its the other way round for their heats, with the slightly softer scotch bonnet burn very much playing second fiddle to the prickly fire of the habanero. Together, they create something a bit above your average mango sauce at the top of what I’d call a

3/10

Heat

Hot but not very, quite simply containing too much fruit to be able to match a purer habanero or scotch bonnet sauce with its level of firepower.

Yet the burn isn’t everything. Or even really the point of this product. Sure, it’s intended as a hotter mango sauce but that’s what it is.

First and foremost, this sauce is about its mango flavour. A smooth, rather fresh fruit base, made even fresher tasting by the addition of pineapple juice.

But its also a little different to other mango sauces.

As mentioned above, the scotch bonnet brings a different kind of fruitiness to this one that gives a real tropical feel. As well as some slight savoury notes brought out by its garlic.

I feel like it draws attention away from the non-pepper fruit a tad so, if you want a pure mango sauce, this might not be for you. If, on the other hand, you just want some caribbean fruitiness, the Dragon’s Blood Hot Fruity Sauce has that in spades.

And it puts a unique spin on it, using only the ingredients found in that same region.

To me, Chilli Pepper Pete haven’t produced a better mango sauce than anyone else and this certainly won’t be replacing the more standard version.

It’s not better. It’s not worse. It’s simply different.

It will, however, most certainly find its uses. It’s a great product that will make an excellent fish marinade or wing sauce when I fancy fancy its uniqueness because, even if it’s a little thin for that second use, the taste is just right for both.

But of course, those of you who caught my review of Hot Ones will already know how well I think this sauce is suited to chicken wings. I featured it in my own personal line up long before I posted this review because it just fitted so well in the middle.