Three from the Lab

What’s up everybody? We’ve played it safe these last couple of weeks but, today, I think it’s time that we branched out to someone new, once again. A company so fresh that they don’t even seem to have a website yet. But they still feature prominently in my local hot sauce shop.

Meet Heat Lab. A small, york-based business with three different flavours and a science-themed aesthetic that’s very much after my own heart.

The wrinkled heat shrink around their bottle necks may show their lack of experience but it says nothing about the quality within. And honestly, I have high hopes for this trio.

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Beast of Birmingham

Happy tuesday again, everyone! It feels like forever since I’ve said that simple line but here we are, back again with another transparent label item. A growing trend, it would seem, and one which I rather appreciate. Given that it puts an extra focus on the look of the sauce, itself.

Just like last time, however, the company behind today’s sauce use web photos that look quite different to what I see in person. With my own bottle, on the right, appearing far lighter and yellower than the dark green sweet chilli which I’d been led to expect:

Neither looks bad, this time around, but their photo suggests something deep and chlorophyllic, while my in-person shade boasts the potential for a more vibrant and tangy flavour. So I’m very curious as to what Pip’s Fuego del Verde actually tastes like.

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Bonnie Bit Hotter

Happy tuesday again, everyone! Today, I’d like to welcome back to the stage The Bonnie Sauce Co., who previously wowed me with an excellent and unexpectedly herby Smoky Chipotle sauce.

This week, they return with something (or things) a little bit hotter. Two more products which, just like in last week’s review, highlight the difference between scotch bonnets and habaneros.

But, as you can see from the photos above, these are not the same yellow pepper sauces and their use of red chilli changes the equation quite considerably. Let’s give them a go and find out how, shall we?

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One Two Punch

Hey folks, welcome back to another of my rare thursday reviews. Reviews that I do specifically when I have an exciting item not sold in the UK, something which is claimed to be inedible or something that has undergone a major recipe change.

Today, I believe that what I have for you falls into the third category. Though the situation is a little weird, this time, because our new, fruit-based “Punch” doesn’t quite share its name with Dorset Chilli Shop’s old one. And the ingredients and design are so vastly different from that 💀“Dorset Punch”💀 that it could easily be considered a whole new product. Even if it doesn’t seem like its makers actually see it that way.

To show you what I mean, here’s a brief look at the bottle before I get into what’s changed:

And I should probably also mention The Chilli Alchemist‘s new Gold, which seems like it very may well be the same sauce in a bigger, prettier bottle.

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Freaky Mary

Hey folks, do you remember East Coast Chilli Co.‘s Chance? I did and I decided I needed another bottle of that creamy, roasted garlic deliciousness. So I went back to them.

I grabbed a bottle of their Reason – Their naga sauce – a little over a month ago. And I grabbed some more of my old favourites, along with.

When I cracked the seal on that new bottle, however, it wasn’t quite how I remembered. It was close but the worcestershire sauce was just a little bit more prominent. And that gave me the idea for today’s cocktail recipe.

A freaky, garlicky twist on a tomato-based classic. Click on through for the details, if you’re old enough to drink.

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Golden Garlic

Hello again, everyone. I’ve had today’s trio in my back pocket for a little while know and, as I understand it, so have two of the companies involved. Because, despite their products looking completely different, both Hot Pods and Foraged Fire have done their absolute utmost to highlight the flavours of fermented honey and garlic, in these two:

And, though our third item may have been made a little quicker, it still promises the same sweet syrup and bold root, at its core:

It’s Torchbearer’s Honey Garlic and, while it promises to be rather milder than their last garlic sauce, that reaper concoction was far from all heat. If They can bring the same creaminess and garlic kick to today’s product, without the world record chilli, my bottle’s going to be gone in no time!

So, without further ado, let’s take a closer look at the lot and see how all three manage to set themselves apart.

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Dark and Dry

Hey folks, I said that we were going to be seeing some more from Alkemio Kitchen soon. So, what better time and way to start than today, with a sauce that I’ve already shown you but couldn’t previously go into depth about?

This is Fergus’ Black Garlic, Chipotle, Tamarind, Chocolate and that last titular ingredient makes it a perfect fit for my first post after World Chocolate Day. But it’s not the only such festive item that I have for you, this year.

I’d also like to showcase a little something in the same vein – Featuring the same blend of chipotle and chocolate – from a less familiar company:

The Chipotle Chocolate Stout, from Hop’t. Which, as their name implies, is heavily focussed on the use of hops. Albeit in a very different setting from any that we’ve seen such herbs in before.

In fact, it isn’t even the same sort of hops as any of those past products. But you’ll have to read on if you want to see what sets them apart.

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Green Garlic

Hey folks, it’s july already and we’re now well into the middle of summer. So I think that it might be time for a seasonal special, featuring my favourite wild leaf. And I’ll bet you have a pretty good idea of who’s provided it.

This time, though, Foraged Fire aren’t alone in offering up a stunning-sounding, wild garlic product. Their bramley apple salsa verde has some unexpected competition from another of our past partners: The Somerset Chilli Garden.

They’ve created a pale, jalapeño and lime blend with the exact same herb and today, I’m going to find out which sauce uses it better.

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Double Dingo

G’day everyone.

Today I have my third fling with Aussie Hot Sauces – The australian import company known for carrying both 🔥Bunsters🔥 and Byron Bay. Of which the first was even featured on Hot Ones.

Yet Bunsters’ Black Label was a number seven on the show and today we’re looking at a full on nine. One of the hottest sauces to ever be made with the current range of record-level chillies.

This is Dingo Sauce Co.’s Widow Maker. A condiment claimed to be fifteen out of ten on the company’s own scale. But I did also pick up a nice six, for those of you who might find that intimidating.

A more medium heat, smoked sriracha, if its label is to be believed.

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Sriracha’s Shadow

So, dear readers, we’ve seen both black garlic and sriracha quite recently but, this week, we’re seeing them together. Looking at an actual black garlic sriracha that just got released.

Which, because it’s such a garlic-forward style of sauce to begin with, should really highlight the difference between the regular root and its own blackened bulbs. Though, I’ll admit, that’s only half of why I’m excited for this one.

The other half is its maker – Daddy Cool’s – who’ve put out at tonne of great products, all throughout the half decade that I’ve been blogging. You can find more on them in my sidebar, to the right, but the short of it is that this is the latest entry into their square bottle line. Which, up until now, has been nothing short of amazing.

So obviously I had to jump on this sriracha the second that it hit metaphorical shelves. Because my expectations are through the roof. But don’t think that I’m going to go easy on it if they aren’t met, either.

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