After publishing an article about CaptainSpongefoot that appeared in the Denver Post a few months ago, we received a message from the folks there in Colorado who work with the ol’ Captain himself wanting us to try the products out for ourselves. Always being ones who try not never turn down a chance to try good hot & spicy products, we quickly agreed. About a week later, a package appeared on our doorstep…and it’s been our mission ever since to take these sauces for a test-drive to see what they could do and how they could make our food better, spicier, and just more tasty in general.

First, however, we wanted to find out a little more about CaptainSpongefoot…who he is, what does, and more. We caught up with Paul DiBello (a.k.a. CaptainSpongefoot), and he was gracious enough to allow us to ask him a few things about himself and his products. Here’s Paul….

Tell us a little about yourself and how you work to distinguish yourself and your products in the hot sauce market.

I decided early on that we would not be “somebody’s bottled up anger”, nor are we a painful body function. And I chose not to play the circus sauce game. I wanted to present a high quality sauce without making a joke about the product, something that is rare in this food group.

You have some simple, elegant labels. Who came up with the design and how did you decide on those?

I knew I wanted a different look but I didn’t know what. Sukle Advertising was contracted to find an image for the company. Their team at first came up with a name change for the company that actually made reference to a painful body experience. I almost went with it but said no at the last minute and asked then to keep CaptainSpongefoot and work along an old world, quality feel of a by-gone era. One of the team members presented a few versions of ships, nautical elements, and when the C&O labels were finally presented we all knew it had a unique feel. We also all knew that it would be a difficult marketing path to pursue.

How long did it take you to come up with the recipe for your sauces? Tell us a little about your creative process with that.

There’s much to this story, and it’s a good story, but the basics are, back in the early 90s if you guys came over to my house to watch the game, we ate chicken wings. If I could make the sauce hot enough to make you cry Uncle I won-You lost!!, and we probably did it all over again next week w/a different recipe. Just a fun thing.

In 2002 I got tired of sending out store bought Xmas gifts and decided to send out my favorite (a medium heat level) wing sauce instead. I then made the classic mistake of listening to the accolades. I did this again for Xmas 03 and in the meantime started sending out sauce to those who wanted it. Working on a T-day appetizer that year I found the ingredient I was missing in my sauce! For the next few weeks I re-formulated my Original Recipe and decided I wanted to build a Chipotle Sauce as well. After the holiday season many friends and relatives were asking for my sauces regularly.

In Aug of 2004 I learned of the National Buffalo Wing Festival in Buffalo, NY. I considered going but had no money and didn’t know if I was good enough. I sent some samples anyway and received a call from the organizer Drew Cerza that I should indeed attend. We won a 1st, 2nd and 3rd prize that year. I again listened to the accolades, so here I am.

If you had to recommend one of your sauces to someone to try and get them hooked on your stuff, which would you choose and why?

If you’re a real wing lover, let’s have a beer and watch the game person, the Original or the Z-Sauce work well because they are both upper palate orientated. If I want to hook you with a more complex layering of flavors I’d recommend the Chipotle, because it has a bigger, rounder flavor and goes to the lower palate. I also recommend the Chipotle to people who I think are looking for a versatile sauce in the kitchen as well as the table. Personally?? I love the way the Z-Sauce jumps right up to my forehead with a nice Wasabi buzz and my mouth stays really clean and bright.

Assuming you keeep up with such things, whose success in the spicy foods worlds would you like to emulate. How important to you is the critical reviews you’ve received thus far?

I got into this not knowing or caring who I wanted to be like. I did have an idea of who I did not want to be like. If you’re asking about monetary success, I‘d like to be like anyone who’s been able to carve out a niche in the world of food manufacturing. I’ve read about Dave’s Insanity and others and have the utmost respect for what they’ve accomplished. We are just now entering the world of media reviews, blogs and such. As a result of simply getting in front of more and more people, our sales are steadily increasing and we have distribution in both mainstream and natural markets throughout Colorado with King Soopers (Kroger) throughout the state now and Vitamin Cottage coming on line shortly. I do think that continuing an Internet and media presence will be very valuable to us as a company as we continue to establish ourselves in this very competitive market.

Aside from your own sauces, are there any other sauces that you enjoy using? If so, which ones?

I enjoy many sauces, but they have to have real substance not just powder and vinegar to get my attention. The original Melinda’s is one I like and I like the different taste of Cholula as it is actually a blend of a number of chilies even though it is a little on the vinegary side, but then we all know vinegar is cheap, don’t we??

Is there anything new brewing in the kitchens at CaptainSpongefoot sauces? If so, what?

You have a sample of our new sweet heat the Cranberry Chipotle. This sauce will eventually require new blending equip. before we can produce volume. I’m most excited about our new Salsa Especial, A new flavor, a new heat level, and a unique ability to really heat you up without the unpleasant numbing of the palate. It’s my tribute to those who CAN “stand the heat of the kitchen.” I’ll be happy to send a sample. I also have under development a sauce that is built around the concept of working with the now popular rubs and dredges so popular in the beef and pork creations. Initial cuttings have gained some followers already.

List of ingredients and our reviews

(Reviewers’ note: While we did try these on wings, we did not make them ourselves. We used commercially-made plain wings and added the sauce. As an attempt for us to lose weight, we don’t make a whole lot of deep-fried stuff at home. We also tried to focus on uses for the sauces other than just wings.)

Original Wing Sauce: cayenne pepper, sriracha pepper, water, vinegar, clarified butter, salt, sugar, garlic, natural flavors, spices, and corn starch

Joe’s take: My first instinct was to call this sauce too salty, but it’s really not meant for straight usage. This sauce is a wing sauce, baby, and a darn good one. I’m so used to eating my chicken wings hotter than humans were meant to eat them, so I sometimes forget the true flavor that a good wing sauce can provide. The heat is mild, but the flavor is a tad smoky but with a nice peppery finish. Even the vinegar doesn’t come across as too tart, which you don’t appreciate until after you cook with it a little. Also good mixed with a little meatloaf for a little spicy goodness as well. Great wing sauce that most can appreciate.

Linda’s take: Like Joe, I wanted to call this sauce a little too salty as well. I thought the taste was a lot like the Sriracha sauce (see below), but with a mellower taste and different mouth feel to it. I eat a lot of salad, so I liked to mix a little of this sauce with some olive oil or some blue cheese dressing to make a salad dressing that tastes enough like chicken wings that you’ll think that you’re cheating on your diet…even when you’re not. Other than that, my sentiments echo Joe’s about the wings. I couldn’t eat too many of those on my diet, but what I tried was really good. Thumbs up!

Sriracha Table Sauce: cayenne pepper, sriracha pepper, water, vinegar, clarified butter, salt, garlic, natural flavors and spices

Joe’s take: This sauce was my second favorite after the Original sauce. The texture and flavor are smooth, and I love the tang that you get on the front of your tongue when you taste it. I didn’t really go out on a limb to try this on too many other foods but wings, but it rivaled the Original for the best combination of heat and flavor. The heat is mild to medium, and you like the Sriracha taste more than that icky Rooster sauce you find just about everywhere. Another thumbs up from me!

Linda’s take: Another great wing sauce, but this sauce has more of a distinct “bite” to me that I really like. Well-balanced flavor, it’s got just enough heat that you could use this in larger amounts because the taste seems to go well with a variety of foods. I love sauces with great utility, and I could shake this sauce over lots of foods. Don’t just save it for wings!

Chipotle Table Sauce: cayenne pepper, chipotle pepper, water, vinegar, clarified butter, salt, sugar, garlic, natural flavors, spices, and corn starch

Joe’s take: Yet ANOTHER winner with wings (the smokiness of the chipotle really comes through), but I also found this sauce to be a grand standby for soups & stews. Face it, I eat a lot of those items and I’m always looking for sauces that enhance the flavor of what can be pretty mundane food. From a regular bowl o’ red to creamier soups, I was impressed that the chipotle flavor still hangs around if you add enough of this sauce. While I’d still probably save it for wings, I’d keep some around for those dishes where only the smokiness of a chipotle will do. Mild enough for the meekest chilehead, this one will have broad usage for chipotle lovers of all shapes and taste preferences.

Linda’s take: A vinegary sauce but with loads of chipotle flavor, which I adore. I eschewed the wings usage, but this was my sauce of choice for those naked burrito bowls from Chipotle and Qdoba. Another one that seemed a little salty at first, cooking with this sauce mellows the flavor and I scarcely noticed any saltiness when used with cooked entrees like meats of all kinds. Different mouth feel than many chipotle sauces I’ve tried, and different is good. I think I’ll save some for wings and see how that goes as well. My chipotle “inner child” liked this sauce a lot.

Cranberry-Chipotle Table Sauce: cranberries, cranberry juice, cayenne pepper, chipotle pepper, water, vinegar, clarified butter, salt, lemon, pectin, garlic, natural flavors and spices

Joe’s take: I really loved the chipotle flavor of this sauce, but the intense cranberry flavor makes it a little bit too sweet for me. For a bottled sauce, I love the fresh flavor that the cranberries provide for this sauce. To me, this is not a “pour-over” sauce that you drench food with, but rather more of a cooking sauce. A great glaze or finishing sauce to use with either fish or fowl. If you use it before cooking the meat, it really mellows the flavor.

Linda’s take: I saw this more as a dessert sauce, despite the smoky-sweet flavor. I see this as a good sauce to combine with fresh cranberries and pour it over fresh vanilla bean ice cream for a chilehead dessert. This sauce was amazing with seafood, and I would love to try this with a little coconut-crusted shrimp or the like. Sweet and mellow, it manages to blend the chipotle in for an amazing effect. A good sauce for those of us who have a little sweet tooth with their chilehead urges.

More articles to read about CaptainSpongefoot

The HSB reviews the Original Wing Sauce

Story in the Rocky Mountain News from July 2007

Another online review, this one from Flash in the Pan

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