Melinda's Naga Jolokia Hot Sauce - My First "Ghost Pepper" Sauce

I picked up a bottle of Melinda's Naga Jolokia Hot Sauce at World Market.  The Naga Jolokia pepper is also known as the "ghost pepper" and was considered the hottest pepper in the world back in 2007, but has been superseded several times since then by peppers with increasingly scary names.  I think the current king of the peppery mouth-burning hill is the Dakota Strangler and it's wanted in seven states.

Aside from eating some not-very-spicy fast food burger once that claimed to have "ghost pepper mayo" on it, this was my first exposure to a product made of this pepper.

I almost don't like this sauce, but then it redeems itself with really good, strong heat.  The flavor itself is very sharp and vinegary, leaning a little too close to the dreaded Tabasco Zone for my tastes.  But the high level of heat this sauce brings makes up for it by allowing you to add just a little bit.

My bottle is almost empty and I honestly got through it that fast by using a liberal dash of another tasty sauce I like, and then topping it off with a small dash of this sauce for extra heat.

The bad:  The flavor's a little too sharp for my tastes.

The good:  High heat means you don't have too add too much of that flavor to make something good and spicy.