In general, I can say that I am most enamored of habanero hot sauces as opposed to any other kind of hot sauce. So, it’s tough for me to turn down the opportunity to try just about any of them. That said, I accepted the privilege of reviewing the Firie Habanero Hot Sauce to see what a company from North Carolina could do to make a Caribbean-style sauce.

Ingredients: water, mango, vinegar, smoked habanero peppers, carrots, sugar, garlic, lime juice, salt, spices, xanthan gum, curry powder

The FIRIE HABANERO sauce is our first release and truly one of a kind in the hot sauce world. It is a Caribbean style hot sauce that gets its name from an Irie blend of tropical mango fruit and fire-hot orange habaneros. Orange habaneros could be considered the gold standard for all habaneros and were probably the first “exotic” chili pepper to gain fame and acceptance among the chili pepper appreciating public in the United States.

Because so many people are familiar with this great pepper we chose it to headline our first and to date most popular hot sauce. To create this unique sauce we first select the finest and freshest ingredients. The sauce combines fresh, smoked habaneros, mangos, carrots, lime juice, garlic, sea salt, water, vinegar and a few additional secret spices. Once all the ingredients are together then it’s The Process: Our home grown habanero peppers are slowly smoked using apple wood and indirect heat for 3 hours and then pureed to create a mash which is then cooled and refrigerated overnight. Next the remaining ingredients are simmered along with the mash for several hours allowing all the flavors to come together. Finally, all ingredients are strained and the resulting liquid is bottled, resulting in a sweet, smoky, and FIRIE flavored hot sauce.

The “firie” is a takeoff from the word “irie,” which is a word from the Rastafari vocabulary that means to be at total peace with your current state of being. The way you feel when you have no worries.. I was fascinated by the Star of David on the bottle, which I found out was also a Rastafarian symbol. Apparently, the Rasta consider themselves like the Israelites in exile in Babylon…and the Star of David is the symbol of Israel. A hot sauce that taught me something? Excellent.

First impression: I mentioned the cool label above, but the aroma is the epitome of smokiness. Not quite a mesquite-type smoky smell, but one that makes you think of food that is smoked properly. Another thing that struck me is the consistency. This sauce is very well mixed and does not settle that much with standing. It is fairly thin and comes with one of those restrictor-cap thingies to keep you from dumping it all out as you pour it from the bottle. The ingredients are all-natural (a big plus), but I don’t get the use of carrots. Carrots in hot sauce is not usually an ingredient that adds a lot of flavor (with some exceptions) and usually just adds blandness and an orange color, so I think they could have either omitted that or found a worthy substitute.

Taste: Tasting it from the bottle, my first thought was just how smoky this sauce tastes. For those of you who like chipotle sauces, this is a different kind of taste. Chipotle is a very earthy taste, while this sauce’s smokiness is much “lighter.” Noteworthy without being overwhelming. It has a bit of a vinegary bite but that is tempered by a bit of the fruitiness from the mango. Heat-wise, it’s a bit less hot for a habanero sauce than I expected…perhaps a 6/10 or so depending on how you eat it. I taste more smoke than habanero, and that’s not necessarily a good thing.

I carried this sauce with me for over a week, and found the smokiness a little much for pour-over usage with some foods, but not with others. I liked it in foods where it was mixed in, such as soups, sauces, and dressings. Overall, my uses with it were a little hit-or-miss. I did like it most as an add to fish tacos.

Overall recommendation: If smoky sauces are your thing, you will adore this sauce. It does homage to Carribean-style sauces with its habanero flavor and manages to do so with all-natural ingredients. That said, the sauce is itself is one where your mileage may vary. In some dishes, it seems a little nondescript. I found enough to do with to keep it in active rotation with my “in use” hot sauces, but you’ll have to decide for yourself. Enjoy!