This sauce comprises the last of the original four sauces from Hot Sauce Hawaii that I was privileged enough to be offered the chance to review. This sauce, the Hawaiian Passion Habanero Vinaigrette is truly unique, even amongst the other sauces from the same line.

Ingredients: balsamic vinegar, olive oil, habaneros, jalapenos, mustard (water, mustard seed, distilled vinegar, salt, white wine, citric acid, tartaric acid & spices), salt kitchen Bouquet (caramel, carrots, onion, celery, parnsips, turnips, salt, parsley, spices, sodium benzoate & sulfiting agents), spices, garlic

First impression: I adore the graphics on this sauce, with the aboriginal-ish skull with the flames coming out of its mouth. The oil and vinegar do obviously separate a little, which is not what you normally see in a sauce like this. The herbs in this sauce give a bit of a “floral” aroma to this sauce. The thinness of this sauce makes the restrictor cap, which I usually eschew, almost a necessity. Shaking out a few drops at a time seems to work out great.

Taste: Not a typical hot sauce in either taste or consistency, I found that this sauce didn’t just work with everything. The vinegar and olive oil make this taste a bit like an infused salad dressing with chiles in it. I could taste the jalapenos overall but felt a little bit of the habanero heat with each usage. It’s a medium-hot sauce to me, perhaps about a 5.5/10 for heat. More so than most sauces, this one could be adequately described as spice-laden. Between the kitchen bouquet and other spices, it has a myriad of subtleties to its flavor that would go well with a variety of dishes. It was a little liquid-y to be used like most sauces when poured over food, however. I preferred this as a chilehead salad dressing, which is out-freaking-standing as a spicy addition to your favorite salad. As suggested, it is a great sauce to use as a marinade for meat or veggies. We tried it with some thin steak out on our grill, and it was outstanding. The meat was tender and tasty after 2 hours marinading in this sauce.

Hawaiian Passion Habanero Vinaigrette 5oz bottle
Our Habanero Vinaigrette sauce is completely unique — makes a great salad dressing, marinde and more! Wonderful flavor, nice heat, can’t be beat! Created by Hawaii Chef Henry Holthaus. Made in Hawaii! Made with Balsamic Vinegar. Olive Oil, Habanero and a few secret flavors. Makes killer potato salad. Spice up those steaks and ribs. A dipping sauce that will make you say WOW! Get one – Get a bunch. Great graphics. Wonderful gift!

Overall recommendation: This is not your prototypical hot sauce by any stretch. To me, it’s more like a cooking sauce or marinade than a hot sauce as I’m used to it. It is nice and spicy, but with pure spices in addition to some yummy chile peppers. A bit left-of-center, but a sauce out of Hawaii that you can experiment with to your heart’s content. Give it a try and see for yourself. Enjoy!!!