Chuck Evan’s Montezuma Brand Smokey Chipotle Lima and Garlic Salsa won first place at this years Weekend of Fire for the Salsa Competition. When everything was said and done, there were a few bottles left over so I got one for review. Let’s dive right in.

Montezuma Brand Smokey Chipotle Lima and Garlic Salsa Ingredients: Tomatoes, tomato puree, onions, Chile peppers, garlic, Smokey Chipotle Pepper Sauce, lime juice, lemon juice, vinegar, herbs and spices.

While the ingredient list reads a lot like his Chipotle Salsa, the taste is definitely different. Right up front is the lime, tart but tasty. Then comes the tomato which has a slight problem, the seeds. Both the tomato and pepper seeds in his other salsas are nice and soft, but in this one they are a bit more solid and it’s really distracting contrast from the rest of the soft ingredients.

Up next is the garlic and there are enough garlic chunks in every chip full to let you know that it’s a dominate flavor. After that is his Smokey Chipotle sauce, unripened Jalapenos, a hint of herby goodness and the lemon juice follows everything out into the after taste. The heat is a little under a medium, starts in the front of the tongue and moves to the middle.

For me, this sauce is too in-between. Some of the ingredients are soft while others are crisp and chewy. I would have liked to see it either be one or the other, not bi-polar. But for sure, the salsa delivers what it promises to on the front label; Lime, Garlic, Chipotle.

Taste: 6, Heat: 3.7