It can be hard, thankless work to co-run a web-only entertainment publication, but it can also have its perks every now and then. Among the cooler aspects of the job is the opportunity to be sent things to review. I typically try to only agree to receive items with a local connection, but sometimes a review offer is just too compelling to pass up—even though it has literally nothing to do with Milwaukee.
The latest instance of this is an odd and extremely unexpected collaboration from two brands that have pretty much nothing to do with each other. When a PR professional emailed me in late April to see if I wished to try the product born of this perplexing partnership, I replied in less than five minutes to say yes. Yes, I would love to try Taco John’s and 5-Hour ENERGY’s limited edition caffeinated hot sauce.
Last week, I received this branded box in the mail. It arrived just in time for the launch of the limited edition “Energizing Hot Sauce” that contained as much caffeine as a cup of regular coffee.
The box contained the Mango Habanero flavored sauce in a two-ounce 5-Hour ENERGY-sized bottle and a pair of “Spicy Cinco De Mango” flavored bottles of 5-Hour ENERGY. I took a beat to think about what I should put this sauce on and how I could incorporate the energy shots (if at all) into my review. Eventually, I decided the best way to evaluate the sauce was to have it on Taco John’s food, just as the twisted minds at these two corporations probably intended.
I headed to the Layton Ave. Taco John’s location—which is located a few blocks from a Qdoba and mere steps from Milwaukee’s best Taco Bell—and ordered a variety of items to serve as Energizing Hot Sauce delivery mechanisms.
It’s basically a requirement to order Potato Olés when you go to Taco John’s. The chain’s most iconic and beloved menu item is wonderful on its own, but best when dipped in salsa, nacho cheese, or a 50/50 blend of both. With its fruit-forward sweetness and a definite building spiciness, the Energizing Hot Sauce seemed to work against the savory Olés. After testing different sauce-to-Olé ratios, I decided to finish the rest of my Olés without any sauce accompaniment. It was a rough start, but there was still time to turn things around.
I’ve come to learn the Bean Burrito isn’t the strongest menu item at Taco John’s. Essentially, it’s a flour tortilla smeared with a lump of particularly thick and dry refried beans, some diced raw white onion, a little bit of shredded cheddar cheese, and that’s about it. It certainly required some hot sauce, so I was happy to douse an open end with a liberal shake of the 5-Hour ENERGY co-branded concoction. Again, I felt like it brought a little too much sweetness to the otherwise bland party. However, incorporating both the sauce and some Olés onto the burrito helped matters considerably. I should note that I later tried the same mixture using a packet of the default Taco John’s in-store hot sauce and I found that to be the best version of the burrito.
Finally, I finished this saucy experiment with the Nacho Taco Bravo. Much like Goldilocks (if Goldilocks ate her porridge alone in her car in a parking lot by the airport), the TJ’s dual-shelled amalgam of ground beef, refried beans, shredded cheddar, fresh lettuce, and a generous drizzle of nacho cheese was “just right” when this limited edition hot sauce was added to the equation. The sauce’s noticeable spice was cooled a little by the lettuce, and the mango habanero notes played well with the crumbled beef and nacho cheese. Phew! There actually was something on the Taco John’s menu this sauce tasted good on. Oh, and I subsequently put it on frozen pizza and it was super good. I’m excited to try it in other things as well. It has promise.
As far as the “Energized” aspect is concerned, my Taco John’s trial only required about a fifth of the bottle of hot sauce (maybe 40mg of caffeine), which was far too little for me to notice any energy-related impacts. That being said, I did make sure to bring one of the Cinco De Mango energy shots with me, which certainly perked me up a little bit on account of the 230mg of caffeine and the tongue-tingling duo of tropical mango and habanero pepper.
All things considered, this collaboration doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, but between the unconventional gimmick of a caffeinated hot sauce and that sauce’s distinct flavor (that, oddly enough, seems to be better suited for non-Mexican foods) definitely make it worth grabbing if you’re at all intrigued by this limited time offering. Even though I’m not 100% sold on it, I’m happy I said yes to receiving a bottle so I could try it and write a review that has little-to-no reason to be posted on Milwaukee Record.
