Oh Canada!

by L

When we think of our neighbor to the north, we think of many things:
1. Great moments in hockey
2. Maple syrup
3. Maple leaves
4. Toronto Maple Leafs*
5. Snow
6. Poutine
7. Tim Horton’s (the coffee shop, not the person).
We do not think of spicy food or hot sauce. In fact, when your esteemed authors first queried the token Canadian of the lab, he said it would be quite difficult to find Canadian hot sauce. Maple syrup? Easy. Something with more kick? Not so easy. We were not optimistic about trying to get a sauce from each homeland of all of our coworkers covered, in part because of Canada.**

But then, a miracle happened. I received a phone call from my best friend, who is familiar with our quest despite living four hours away. She was just back from a business trip to Ottawa, she said. And she had found a Canadian hot sauce.

I was stunned.

A few weeks later, I went to visit her and picked up the rare specimen. Today, we introduce you to the little-known world of Canadian hot sauce, which is apparently lovingly made by a gentleman named Dan.

*That weird spelling choice bothers your esteemed author.
**And Australia. And the UK.

Sauce: Dan T’s Inferno
Manufacturer: Dan T's
Chili pepper: Cayenne (Capsicum annuum)
Country of origin: Canada
Score: 8/10

First, we checked the ingredients: no maple syrup. We weren’t sure whether to be disappointed. Then, we went for the taste test. It turns out that the reason there is no syrup is because this sauce is serious about spice and spice only. This bottle packs some significant kick. We warned our other lunch companions to use it sparingly. (We usually don’t do this, not because we’re mean--although we can’t pretend we wouldn’t find some sauce-induced tears funny--but because usually it isn’t necessary.) I can’t even recall much of a flavor to the sauce because any flavor there might have been was overwhelmed by the burn. This was some very impressive sauce, and would be particularly perfect for those occasions when you really want to make sure your friends don’t want a bite of your food, or an occasion where you are told you must jazz up your entire meal with just half a teaspoon of sauce.