Tom Tastes Tabasco Sauce & Marinade Collection

Tabasco’s Sauce & Marinade collection

2014-07-29

Chipotle and Smokey Bourbon (Mild) 3.5*

A tomato based sauce spiced with Tabasco brand pepper sauces, Scotch and Bourbon Whiskies

This had a nice smoky flavour, quite like a smoky barbeque sauce with just a hint of spice and a relish-like hit. Perfect on burgers or ribs (as the back of the bottle suggests and very rightly so). It is however quite sweet (although it has nothing on chipotle and cola) and I can’t really detect any sign of a Bourbon-y taste, more like smoky, ever-so-slightly spicy barbeque. We tried to use this as a marinade for some chicken we were doing on the barbeque but unlike the back of the bottle says, this isn’t suitable for use as a marinade on its own and may need mixing with some oil to avoid it sticking and stripping all the skin and sauce off.

Sweet Chipotle and Cola (Mild) 1.5*

A sweet sauce spiced with Tabasco brand pepper sauces and cola flavoured soft drink

We had really high expectations for this one, me being a fan of all the weird and wonderful things I can possibly find to eat (this is pretty tame but appealed). However, this was our least favourite. The problem was it was far too sweet and I swear even had a very mild foamy banana taste (the ones you get from the pick and mix, not a banana that had the misfortune of catching fruit rabies). It did however have a nice mild warmth and I’m sure if you like mildly spicy and very sweet then this would do it for you.

Peppery Deep South Creole (Medium) 4*

A tomato based sauce spiced with Tabasco brand pepper sauce

A nice mild heat and this is the one you definitely want at your barbeque. A nice blend of ketchup-like sweetness and tomato-tartness with a lovely medium heat and sweet peppery flavours. This would be absolutely perfect on your burger or an addition to a chilli for a chilli dog. A really great take on a barbeque classic.

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Fruity and Fiery Hot Habanero (Hot) 4*

This was the most interesting; the first 2 seemed like jumped up ketchup/ barbeque sauce (don’t get me wrong I’m all for making those two things a little more exciting) but this one was a little different. It had a nice manageable heat for people that like heat and had a really exotic flavour – like a fruity, spicy Indian piccalilli but a little less tart (owing to the mango and papaya I would guess). Again I would agree with the back of the bottle on this one – it would be nice in a stir fry as the main event but I feel it might be a bit out of place at your summer barbeque.

 

Overall I like that Tabasco are trying new things other than a scorching sauce that is useful only for supposedly encouraging growth of so far virtually non-existent hairs on my chest (I like to think of it more as highly evolved). They’ve managed to put a new, more flavoursome and spicy spin on some otherwise quite dull table condiments and hopefully we’ll see a lot more new and exciting innovation from this capsaicin crazed company.

 

Kavey Eats received sample products from Tabasco.

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16 Comments to "Tom Tastes Tabasco Sauce & Marinade Collection"

  1. Jacqueline Meldrum

    I’ve not noticed these yet. Shame about the cola one as that caught my eye immediately. May try the first one. Thanks for the review and welcome to blogland Tom.

    Reply
  2. Elizabeth

    A lovely review! I will keep an eye out for these in the shops here in Shetland – I especially like the sound of the smoky bourbon one. I’ll use this space to make a confession too – I’ve kept this deep dark secret for 13 years. My son is a thief. We went to a gift shop in California that sold all sorts of bizarre things including miniature bottles of Tabasco sauce. They were tiny – like 3mls in each one. We left the shop, and shortly after, there, clenched in my 1 year old son’s fist was one of the bottles of Tabasco sauce. His very first (and only – I hope!) criminal act! Phew – glad to get that off my chest. 😉 Welcome to the blogosphere Tom! 😀

    Reply
  3. sandi

    Fab review, I am not sure I will rush too try these as I really do not like ketchup or sweet with my savoury things, least I am forewarned should I see some on offer.

    Reply
    kaveyeats

    I’ve a sweet tooth but actually my favourite condiment is a sweet sharp mustard ketchup by Tracklements. Love it!

    Reply
  4. kaveyeats

    Is always interesting when brands with a well known core product branch out — can work well but not always!

    Reply
  5. M.NotLeafy

    As a one-time owner of more than 200 chilli sauces/marinades I soon ran into the sameyness trap (and out of cupboard space) and I now pick new ones carefully to keep it down to 80 or so. I’ve picked these up several times and put them down again as I had a feeling they would disappoint. I’m not surprised that the creole is the best one, just as standard Tabasco is the best of their sauces and where their culinary roots lie. Thanks to your review I will now try a bottle of creole.

    Reply
    kaveyeats

    My mind is boggling at the image of over 200 chilli sauces – where did you store them all?!!!!

    Reply
  6. M.NotLeafy

    I’m limited to the two shelves on the top of the broom cupboard but they are pretty deep.

    Reply

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