By Kerry J. Byrne
Wednesday, July 13, 2005

Joe Perry made his fame and fortune touring the world with Aerosmith. But he’s winning a new circle of fans among foodies with his line of hot sauces, and planning to expand his stable of products. Joe Perry’s spicy tortilla chips or beef jerky? You might see them this fall.

The 54-year-old rock guitarist grew up in Hopedale in an Italian-Portuguese family and said a passion for food is “in my blood.” Barbecue, however, is what tickles his palate most. In fact, he said, all “those (Aerosmith) gigs are just a sidetrack to get to the next barbecue joint.”

A visit to his Duxbury home reveals all the trappings of a man who enjoys the limited time he has in his own kitchen: Perry pours freshly made espresso from a state-of-the-art machine, froths milk for his cappuccino in a stovetop steamer and culls recipes from the collection of cookbooks lining his counter. He does most of his cooking outdoors and boasts a large smoker at another home in Vermont where smoked pork ribs and turkey legs are among his favorite dishes.

On a dreary, wet July day, he quickly whips together an indoor lunch for his guests: a whole-wheat wrap of thinly sliced beef brisket with avocado and grilled vegetables topped by a generous dollop of Boneyard Brew hot sauce, the flagship product that his food company, Joe Perry’s Rock Your World Inc., introduced about four years ago. Perry said he spent years “basically mixing sauces together to get what I wanted.” Highlighted by the smoky aroma of chipotle peppers, some sweet balance and the palate-whipping kick of habanero peppers, his sauce is perfect with barbecued beef or pork, as a topping for hamburger or even with eggs. Perry likes to blend it with salsa while his son Roman “mixes it with ketchup.” Boneyard Brew also is served with the quesadilla sold at Hard Rock restaurants around the world. Last year, Perry introduced his Mango Peach Tango hot sauce, with more of a fruity Caribbean flavor and more ideally suited for fish and chicken dishes.

“We wanted something that had some flavor, but more like an everyday table sauce like you’d see in Jamaica.” Perry and his son Aaron, who runs the food company, plan to expand their offerings this fall. They still are considering a long list of products: spicy potato or tortilla chips, beef jerky, even macaroni & cheese.