Winning in the Rain

Before Sunday, August 25, there was no available data about the rain-inducing properties of hot sauce. Now it appears that all that was needed to break the drought was an outdoor festival celebrating Central Texas' most revered condiment. Hundreds of chile heads braved torrential downpours, mud and soggy chips for the opportunity to tantalize and torture their taste buds with salsa entries from all over the country. The rain gods looked favorably on such fortitude and sent even more rain. In the Sixth Annual Austin Chronicle Hot Sauce Contest, the salsa-loving public sampled the specialties that the celebrity judges were passing down from their dry perch in the Central Market cooking school. Below are the results of the judges' deliberations. There were many new entries and several first time winners. Whenever possible, we've noted where the winning potions can be purchased so salsa lovers can vote with their wallets. Hearty congratulations to all the winners and sincere gratitude to the faithful who brought on the rain. -- Virginia B. Wood

Individual Category

Red Sauce 1st Place: Joe Morales III, Austin 2nd Place: Dennis Williams, Cedar Creek

3rd Place: Lori Adams, Austin

Green Sauce

1st Place: Joanna Shuckman, Round Rock

2nd Place: Karen Peterman, Austin

3rd Place: Pamela Wells, Austin

Special Variety

1st Place: Jimmy Williams, Austin

2nd Place: Michael Walters, Galveston

3rd Place: Chris Buslett, Austin

Pepper Sauce

1st Place: Ray Prewitt, Austin

2nd Place: Dee Swayze, Lago Vista

3rd Place: Brian Jackson, Spicewood

Restaurants

Red Sauce

1st Place: Trudy's

2nd Place: Bon's Fresh Red Salsa, Bon Fresh
Food Market

3rd Place: Trudy's

Green Sauce

1st Place: Trudy's

2nd Place: Trudy's

3rd Place: Bon's Roasted Tomatillo Salsa, Bon
Fresh Food Market

Special Variety

1st Place: Botanitas Roasted Pepper Salsa

2nd Place: Satay's Roasted Coconut Salsa (a
potential new product, currently only avail-
able at the restaurant.)

Pepper Sauce

1st Place: Mole Sauce, Iguana Grill

2nd Place: Artz on Fire Habanero Sauce, Artz Rib
House

Commercial Bottlers

Red Sauce

1st Place: Roasted Garlic & Red Pepper Salsa
from Santa Cruz Fine Foods of San Jose, Cali-
fornia. (Currently available in Texas at Rice
Epicurean in Houston, coming soon to Austin.)

2nd Place: Hutton House Salsa from Linda &
Darrell Hutton of Rock Hill, South Carolina
(For sale only in their immediate area.)

3rd Place: Max's Salsa Sabrosa from Norma Garvey
and son Max, of New Braunfels (Available at
Central Market, Wheatsville, Ave. B Grocery,
many HEB's.)

Green Sauce

1st Place: Rose's Salsa Verde, Timpone's Fresh
Foods of Austin. (Available everywhere.)

2nd Place: Smoky Hill Salsa, Austin Spice Co.
(Will be available at Whole Foods Markets by
mid-September, email orders Austnspice-
@aol.com.)

3rd Place: Satay Kaffir Lime Salsa, Texas Food
Research of Austin. (A potential new product
only available at Satay Restaurant.)

Special Variety

1st Place: Devil's Revenge Habanero Salsa, Poco
Loco Chile Co., Al Galley of Katy, Texas.
(Wholesale/retail/mail-order catalogues avail-
able, call 713/578-8465.)

2nd Place: Texas Heatwave, Original Habanero
Co., Jay Davis of Selma, Texas. (Avaliable at
Sun Harvest, Whole Foods, Travis Co. Farmer's
Market; mail order 800/946-9401.)

3rd Place: Pineapple Pico, Sgt. Pepper's Hot
Sauce Microbrewery of Austin. (Sold in their
own store, 601 E. North Loop.)

Pepper Sauce

1st Place: Chilipaya Island Rojo Sauce, Jo B's,
Warren, Vermont. (Mail-order from 800/496-7889.)

2nd Place: Habanero Supreme, Aztexan Pepper
Co., Mark & Nikki Witt of Austin. (Whole
Foods Market, Wheatsville, Fresh Plus,
Sambet's Cajun Store, on the tables at La Zona Rosa.)

3rd Place: Gorda'sala Habanero Salsa,
Jo B's,Warren, Vermont

Honorable Mentions Individual Red Sauce

Janice Krizek, Austin

Edward Zamora, Austin

Rob Jenkins, Austin

Kim Goble, Nixa, Missouri

Mike Wallgren, Austin

Scott Stueve, Smithville

Amy McClurd, Huntsville

Commercial Red Sauce

Timpone's, Austin

Oregon Harvest, Portland, Oregon

Xochitl, Dallas

Restaurant Red Sauce

Trudy's

Curra's Grill

Trudy's

La Zona Rosa

Driskill Hotel

Individual Green Sauce

Jim Walsh, Wimberley

Jimmy Williams, Austin

Blanco Ben's Dynamite

Restaurant Green Sauce

Driskill Hotel

Individual Pepper Sauce

Paul Fromberg, Houston

Commercial Pepper Sauce

Grand Anse (St. Thomas, USVI)

Premium Spice & Trading Co. (Trinidad, W.I.)

Flounder Juice (Pittsboro, NC)

Six Gun Salsa

Sgt. Pepper's

Cajun Radar Foods (Paw Paw, MI)

Individual Special Variety

Vannessa Henley, Austin

Michael Walters, Galveston

Commercial Special Variety

Outrageous Gourmet, Brownsboro

Divine Culinary Co.

Circle R Ranch Gourmet Foods, Flower Mound