Ingredients: Vinegar, “Hapanero” pepper, mustard, onion, garlic, salt, tumeric, paprika, sorbic acid.

Oh man, where do I even begin with this one? “You Lousy Bastard” (YLB) Hot Sauce certainly knows how to make a first impression. Some hot sauces present themselves like a dapper, well groomed gentleman in a tuxedo. Showing up on your doorstep in a chauffeur driven limousine, shoes shined and smelling of expensive after-shave. YLB arrives unshaven and on foot, in a grease smeared white-tanktop, smoking a cheap stogie. The artwork on the bottle is amateurish, and the key ingredient is misspelled, but it’s all in good fun as YLB’s fiery tongue is planted firmly in it’s cheek. Included with the packaging is a colorful plastic “high-heel” key-chain. My daughter got a “kick” out of that…

Text from the bottle:
“Everyone’s met this person at SOMETIME in their life! And you know, we all know one! The Lousy Bastard that cut you off this morning, your Lousy Bastard boss, or the Lousy Bastard you married that you caught screwing your teenage babysitter! Forget the Lousy Rotten Bastard! Turn up some heat of your own & ENJOY!”

YLB is a lovely yellow sauce of medium consistency, laced with gorgeous chunks of habanero pepper and spices. This sauce LOOKS hot. The aroma is just about what you’d figure based on the ingredient list. Heavy on the mustard and heavy on the habs. There’s nothing half-throttle about this sauce. A good long snort from YLB and stuffy sinus cavities are a thing of the past.

Pass me a cloth for my foreheadThe flavor of YLB does not disappoint. I love spicy mustard with Bratwurst, typically favoring the horseradish/dijon variety, and YLB delivers the mustard in spades. Heat-wise, YLB is something of a flame-thrower! Easily the hottest sauce I’ve reviewed for the Hot Sauce Blog, YLB’s Habaneros are ready to party. It’s suprising that their flavor doesn’t get overwhelmed by the mustard. My wife cut the sauce 50/50 with regular mustard, but I enjoyed it just fine as is. Mustard. Heat. Does it get any better? Pass me a cloth for my forehead.

Now there’s always the question of useability. When a sauce uses a strong flavorful backbone like mustard, there’s the unspoken knowledge that it won’t “go” with everything. Some folks don’t favor the taste of mustard on spaghetti or chili, for instance. Find the right food, however, and you’ve got yourself a winner.

“You Lousy Bastard” surprised me. The bottle’s gimmicky artwork had me expecting a pedestrian, rubber-stamped effort. Instead I found a sauce that was unique, refined, and tasty. I’ll use this sauce wherever I would normally use mustard. Recommended.

Packaging 6/10
Appearance 8/10
Aroma 8.5/10
Taste 8.5/10
Heat 7.5/10

Overall 7.7/10

Mary’s Gourmet Foods, Inc.
PO Box 1843
El Prado, NM 87529
877-776-2171