Is hot sauce A) a condiment or B) a full-on food or C) its own cuisine category or D) a way of life or E) on whatever delicious dish you're consuming at this very moment?
The answer would normally be F) — all of the above, natch — but hot sauce is such a superstar, and so obsessed-over by its true-heart fans, that one feels badly if letters G through Z aren't included, too, somehow.
If you're a blast-of-heat buff, look what's back for its second go-around: the California Hot Sauce Expo.
Where's the scene for all of the delicious Scoville scale action? Rainbow Lagoon in Long Beach. When's all of that heat-a-tude going down (or up, since we equate heat with rising temperatures)? Saturday, July 16 and Sunday, July 17 are the dates.
There's also a Guinness Book of World Records face-off happening, and you best pour yourself a glass of ice water before you read what it is, exactly. It involves the eating of incredibly hot reaper peppers, and how many of those peppers can be consumed in a minute.
On second thought, push the glass of water away, as every hot sauce aficionado knows that water sipped immediately after a pepper can only stoke the fire. Hold off on that sip for a minute or so.
Bloody Mary mavens will also want to take note that The Bloody Mary Mix-Down, presented by Stoli, will be a centerpiece of the wickedly tongue-toasty weekend. Burritos and tacos, too, will have their challenges.
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Should you just want to shop among the vendors, and take your saucy finds home for your own cooking, that's cool — er, hot — too. Bocas Hot Sauce, Cobra Chilis, Flavors of the Sun, and Humboldt Hot Sauce are expected to show, among the many purveyors of liquid heat.
Tickets? They're ten bucks a pop, and, yep, you will enjoy samples at the expo. There's a craft brew package, and a VIP package, too, so explore your choices.
We'd recommend keeping a bottle of water handy, but, again, every hot sauce expert knows that the peak heat can sometimes only be further encouraged by a too-quick sip.
You know your palate, your taste, and your obsession for hot sauce. Proceed with flavorful caution, and pepper-powerful joy, as you go for the hottest sauces around at the California Hot Sauce Expo.
