Review - Pyro Pete Sauces Ultimate Salsa
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I'm always pleased when a local St. Louis area spicy food practitioner jumps into the arena of fiery consumables. This time out it's Pyro Pete Sauces & Rubs based out of North St. Louis County. Recently, owner "Pyro" Pete McNees has kindly provided some of his Ultimate Salsa for me to take a stab at assessing. Will it prove to be the pentacle of salsa satisfaction as the name of it might suggest or will it be a hum-drum condiment and dip that sputters out? Read on to find out...
Ingredients:
Ingredients: Tomatoes, Onions, Jalapenos, Sugar, Vinegar, Garlic, Salt, and Secret Spices.
Aroma:
4 out of 5. This is about as middle of the road and "normal" as it could be for a standard Mexican style salsa, but it's still very good for one. Sweet tomatoes, onions and jalapenos are the predominant scent.
Appearance and Texture:
4 out of 5. Pyro Pete Sauces Ultimate Salsa is red and very chunky (just the way I prefer it) while retaining the mushy "juice" formed from cooking that might please fans of runnier salsas. This contains sizable chunks of onions and peppers and all in all looks wonderful and ready for scooping.
Taste Straight Up:
4.5 out of 5. There's nothing surprising or out of the ordinary here. It's simply got a great, rich tomato flavor at its base with heavy sweetness. This sweetness is not candy-like, fruit-like or sickening at all, but it based on a more "natural" taste derived from the tomato pieces and the added sugar. It's very noticeable but thankfully it balances magnificently with tanginess from the vinegar, the acidic properties of tomatoes and the bluster of onions, garlic and jalapenos.
This salsa takes the straightforward approach of the nationally-known brands like Pace and Old El Paso and nearly perfects it. There's not much I would change at all about Pyro Pete except for perhaps the tiniest hint of a smokey chipotle presence would send this into salsa heaven. That's splitting hairs, and this stuff is mighty darn good tasting as it is.
Heat:
For a seasoned heat fan like me, any claims of spiciness in salsa by the manufacturer are taken with a grain of salt. They could promise "Medium" or "Hot" yet barely any burn could be detected in these.
Enter Pyro Pete's salsa. There are no mentions of the supposed heat level anywhere on the jar, so I assumed that this would be mild fare. There is an unexpected kick of heat to this on the level of a milder jalapeno. It's slow to build up and the concept of it burning really only pops into your head after the seventh or eighth bite. Yes, this probably does not sound scary and shouldn't be considered threatening at all to most salsa lovers. This would rate a 1.5 out of 5 on heat.
Taste on Food:
4.5 out of 5. I found this to be very munchable with tortilla chips. One after the other, Pyro Pete Sauces Ultimate Salsa became addictive to me to where I had to force myself to stop, but not before I tore through 1/3 of the jar. Does that say any more about the supreme snackability of this product?
All the usual uses for salsa would suit this one just fine: mixing with melted cheese for some killer salsa con queso; a topper or filler for for Mexican favorites; or (in a usage I think is highly underrated) as a condiment for burgers and dogs.
Label:
I thought the colors, fonts and graphics for the most part looked snazzy. Some of the text, though, is very heard to read due to the small, razor-thin typeface and the relative lack of contrast in the colors.
Overall:
I highly recommend this product. Pyro Pete Sauces Ultimate Salsa certainly won't set the fiery foods industry on its ear with originality, but this is a very admirable take on a well-loved formula.
The Pyro Pete website at http://www.pyropetesauces.com sells a two-pack of 16 oz jars of salsa for $12.58 plus shipping. The company also offers its own dry rubs and hot sauce.
Related Articles:
Spicy Food Reviews - Hot Sauce Reviews, Hot Snacks, Hot Wings, Seasonings, BBQ Sauces, Condiments, and More
Comments
2010-06-12 10:55:12
2010-06-16 21:32:11
2010-06-22 10:25:52
2010-06-26 18:45:24
2010-06-26 20:00:10
2010-06-26 21:57:03
Pete should plan on having plenty of pallet jacks and body oil on hand; This is a winner!!!
2010-09-18 20:08:33
2011-12-22 07:39:57
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