JD's South Philly Pyro Pineapple: tropic thunder

I came across this humble sauce for a mere $3 (USD) at Brooklyn's Chili Pepper Festival in September of 2008. In the corner, a tall, friendly guy peddled his wares, certain that if I tried his sauce cheap, I'd come back. It's a year later, my sauce is long gone, and I have more bottles on order. This sauce really stood out at that day because of its hands-on approach to the American Dream (small business, confidence in product, all natural, etc. etc.) and its remarkable heat and flavor.


Let's look at the facts: JD's South Philly hot sauce company takes pride in their simple craft and the innovation behind it. Their website states, "Pyro Pineapple is different from most hot sauces on the market because it contains no vinegar. J.D. uses a base of citrus fruit and vodka blended with honey and select herbs and spices. This keeps Pyro Pineapple low in sodium and sets it apart from those watered-down, vinegar-based sauces." Hot sauce is a super-duper low calorie food; it does, however, often contain way, way too much sodium, something that can lead to heart problems and liver/metabolism issues. By creating a great hot sauce that keeps it simple and steps outside the traditional box, JD's creates a winner. True enough, the best phrase for this sauce is "a damn good hurt."

Good Hurts: JD's will not disappoint. This searing heat will put tears in your eyes and leave your mouth lingering in pain. It's also flavorful, but the flavor is understated by the heat. When I saw the bottle said Ho Ho Hot, I thought it might be joking around. Like Santa Claus, "ho ho" is no joke. It's time to give the gift of serious heat.


Flavor: It's tropic thunder, a wave of fruity flavors, though pineapple is more understated than they say. It uses a vodka base (a clever innovation), but it's similar to vodka pasta sauce, which tastes like tomatoes and cheese rather than booze. This sauce has the subtle tartness of vodka lurking quietly beneath the surface, but what it really tastes like to me is sweet chutney that's more on the savory side of the sweet scale...think mango or fig chutney. That taste does wrestle a little bit under the weight of its own flavor, however. But not enough to cause any problems...unless you dislike being burned badly, in which case you should leave this site immediately.


Good for: Because the sauce is thicker and more hearty, it works really well to liven up fruity salsas. I think it goes really, really well on corn chips, particularly Fritos. The fruit, salt, and serious Scoville goodness mix really well.

Review:
Flavor: ****
Heat: ****
My Review: 8.6/10

This sauce is a classic; simple innovation combined with something hot enough for pepper heads and tasty enough to add some well-roundedness to your sauce collection.