Month: April 2021

According to the label, this bottle contains 30 portions…

I have absolutely no idea how many portions it provided for me, but I think that’s the first time I’ve noticed a portion size written on a sauce bottle.

Not a terribly hot one this, 5% arbol and piquin being second on the label. The ingredients also intriguingly list “spices” (presumably the nature of said spices are on a strictly need to know basis).

Gotta say, I really like this sauce. It’s not the one to reach for if you want to set your mouth aflame, but the flavour is superb. Great taste from the peppers backed up by the sharpness of the vinegar and spiciness of the… well… spices.

8/10 – I see more bottles of this in my future

This one managed to get pushed to the back of the cupboard so was out of circulation for a while

Caribbean flavours you say? Chilli you say? Yes, yes, I’m listening (well, purchasing and consuming to be more accurate)!

14% habanero, 1% ghost chilli, but you the ghost doesn’t hide. The ginger complements the peppers and mango nicely, with sweetness from the apple and sugar; definitely a tropical edge to the fire.

6/10 – Nice, but they can’t all be winners & fruity sauces are probably never going to be my personal favourite.

Picked this up as I thought it would make a good dipping/burger sauce – relatively viscous compared to many other sauces.

Right off the bat, this one is a disappointment. Ingredients indicate 0.6% habanero (so barely a tickle for any chilli head) and so much sugar. Really. This sauce is so sweet that whereas I thought I’d be liberally spreading it on my burger bun I’m instead using it sparingly (and not for the usual reason that I’d hold back on a chilli sauce!).

Taste? Very sweet tomato ketchup with a barely detectable tingle. Sorry, Epicure, seriously unimpressed.

3/10 – Going to take me a while to finish this bottle…

Having thoroughly enjoyed the “standard” Encona I though that I’d explore some of their other sauces and this is the first one I’ve finished

This one falls into the “it’s fine” category for me. As the label suggests, compared to the Original, it’s hotter but I feel it’s lacking some of the nuance which I liked in that sauce. There’s certainly nothing wrong with it, but it’s not a standout for me.

Salty, slightly acid flavour that I would expect from a sauce based on a mash, followed by quite a forceful hit of Reaper which fades relatively quickly.

7/10 – It’s just fine.