Dorian Etienne spent his childhood in the fields of Delices, a small farming village in Dominica, known as the Nature Isle of the Caribbean. As he grew up near the picturesque Victoria Waterfalls and the White River, he soaked up a style of cooking that leans heavily on tropical herbs and spices for flavor. After an interlude in corporate America, Dorian returned to his roots in 2001 by founding Nature Isle Tropical Gourmet, which began with a bouquet of just six fruit-based condiments. He's added fresh sauces, chutneys, dressings, and other products to his inventory since then, but each still contains only vegan ingredients and eschews gluten and tomatoes, just to take them down a peg.

The unique blends include tropical-fruit chutney, a chunky medley of pineapple and mango that kisses fish, pork, and poultry with a fruity flavor and was awarded the Cooking Club of America's seal of approval. The signature mango cocktail sauce smolders with a mild heat hidden behind tropical tang. These and other sauces star in an online recipe book full of authentic Caribbean dishes, and the website further helps customers weigh their options by rating each product's spiciness on a scale from zero to "great for fire-breathing."