BENITO’S ORIGINAL NARANJA

Welcome back Benito. We were excited to try your ‘Original Naranja’. The last sauce of yours ‘White Hot’ was so very good and unusual. This sparked our curiosity and saliva glands to try your other sauces. I want to be sitting by the river shown on your label tasting great hot sauce. Let’s all sit by river and relax and taste “Original Naranja’.

Aroma & Texture

Original Naranja smells of onions and lime juice. This is a pleasurable aroma. The color is a beautiful orange red color. The texture is of a thick puree

Ingredients

Vermont grown organic habanero peppers, organic carrots,  organic lime juice, organic extra virgin olive oil, orange bell peppers, lime juice, white onion, distilled white vinegars, and garlic are the ingredients of this sauce. Kudos, to Benito for using all these natural and organic products.

Label

I have mixed thoughts about this label. There is a scene of a beautiful valley on an overcast day. The words “A DELECTABLE ADDICTION” scroll the bottom of the picture. Maybe I am putting too much thought into this. It does not really grab my attention and I sort of do not get it. On the back of the label is a picture of a man (Benito?) relaxing by the river. I like that. He is enjoying himself so to me that translates to enjoyment of his product.

Taste

Onion, carrots with a little lime kick is the flavors I taste. It was pleasant but something was lacking. There is no salt in this product. Lime juice can be the jolt to bring the flavor around as the sauce ‘Benito’s White Heat’ demonstrated. With this sauce the flavor was flat and bland. We wanted to taste the habanero’s but they were a no-show in the taste department. We tried the ‘Original Naranja with some home made tamales. The sauce made for a pretty picture but was on the back burner literally in taste.

Heat

This was a disappointment. The heat level was not there. Habanero’s were listed as the first ingredient. It did not have a habanero flavor or the wonderful heat that habanero’s can bring. I would even go as far as saying this sauce is mild.

Overall

I love that Benito is using all natural and organic products. Some people will be happy that he does not use salt. Benito’s labels can be fun. They can be whimsical. It is like going to an art gallery and wondering what did this artist mean? The sauce is a beautiful red and orange color. The taste and heat did not deliver in my opinion. The flavor was flat and not exciting. I will even say it was bland. Overall I would not purchase this sauce again.

BENITO’S HOT SAUCES